HAYDEN – Last year, West Point defeated Fairview in the opening game of the area tournament, ending their season. This year, the Aggies were determined not to fall to them again, with the area championship on the line. A great battle ensued between both teams, and two free throws by Fairview’s Bryson Fletcher sealed the 67-63 5A, Area 12 championship win over the Warriors, who will host their sub-regional game next Tuesday night at 7 p.m.
Fairview did not waste any time, getting off to a great start offensively, as they jumped out to a quick 10-4 lead with 4:37 remaining in the opening quarter, behind five points from Sam Elrod, a three by Luke Yarbrough and a layup by Truman Boyd. They continued their blazing start after a timeout, stretching their lead to 18-6 after a Fletcher and one. West Point finished on a 6-2 run to cut the deficit to 20-12 after one.
Both teams lit up the scoreboard with a combined 45 points in the second quarter. A James Sullins three cut the lead to 24-20, but a layup by Fletcher and a three by Tyler Ball quickly pushed the lead to 29-20. Back-to-back and ones by each team kept it a nine-point game. Brandon Farley converted another 3-point play for West Point to cut the deficit to 32-26. Four quick points by Ryder Jones cut the deficit to 32-30. Fairview countered with a 6-0 run of their own to increase the lead to 38-30. Threes by Jones and Farley, plus a free throw by Kolton Sapp, had West Point looking at a 40-37 deficit at the half.
Fairview started the third quarter strong as back-to-back layups by Yarbrough, plus a three by Elrod, pushed their lead to 47-37 with 5:08 remaining in the quarter, but they only scored on a pair of free throws by Cameron Guthrie after that, as West Point finished on a 8-2 run to cut the lead to 49-45 heading into the final quarter.
Toby Cunningham cut the lead to one on a three to open up the quarter. Fairview countered with a layup by Elrod and two free throws by Boyd to push the lead to 53-48, but Sullins nailed another three to make it a 53-51 game with 4:58 remaining. Farley tied the game with 4:08 remaining on a pair of free throws. Each team traded leads on the next few possessions before two free throws by Yarbrough gave the Aggies a 57-56 lead and they increased the lead to 60-56 on another free throw by Guthrie and a layup by Elrod with 1:58 remaining. Farley cut the lead to 61-60 on a floater, but Fairview went 4-of-6 from the line to make it a 65-60 game. Sullins nailed a three from the right corner with 3.3 seconds remaining to cut the deficit to two, but Fletcher nailed two more from the charity stripe to seal the championship win for Fairview.
Yarbrough finished with 17 points, five rebounds and a steal for Fairview. Elrod also had 17 points, and added three rebounds. Fletcher ended up with 13 points, four rebounds and two steals. Guthrie had 10 points and a pair of steals. Fairview improved to 15-15 on the season.
"We scored a lot on their zone defense, but when they switched to man-to-man, we had trouble scoring," Fairview coach Eddie Groves said. "But we fought through their man-to-man defense. The area championship means a lot to this team. The sub-regional has always been a destination for us. We are there now, so we have to keep battling. Elrod is not only a great shooter, but a great scorer as well."
Groves tipped his hat to West Point for being a worthy competitor.
He added, "West Point is very tough to beat, and they have an exceptional coaching staff. It could have been either teams' game to win. Hats off to them for being a very worthy competitor. They have a really, really great team. They kept battling and they took the lead with three minutes left in the game. We all have respect for them."
He really praised his two seniors on the team, Elrod and Ball.
"This is my second year at Fairview, and Elrod and Ball really helped me out, to get used to everything. They have been so exceptional to coach."
West Point was led by Farley, who finished with 24 points, six rebounds and a pair of steals. Sullins had 14 points and four rebounds. Jones ended up with 12 points, five rebounds, a steal and a block. They will travel in their sub-regional game next Tuesday at 7 p.m.
"We switched to man-to-man to slow down their offense," West Point coach Randy Jones said. "But I am really proud of the guys for continuing to battle the whole game. That shows you what kind of team this is. We have not won a lot of games this year, but we have continued to battle."
He praised one of his seniors, Farley, for really stepping up as a leader on the team.
"He has been through some challenges this year. With him being a senior, he has really stepped up."
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