Southern Sports & Travel, By Darron Thomas
Last night’s district 4AA matchup between top ranked Brookhaven and third ranked Bowling Green appeared to be just another game on the onset but by the time the first half had ended it had the feel of a state title game as the intensity and emotions had everyone in attendance engulfed in a classic battle between the two rivals. In the end Brookhaven edged Bowling Green 58-54 to seal up the number one seed in the upcoming district 4AA tournament at Columbia.
Turnovers plagued Brookhaven in the opening quarter and Bowling Green’s transition game was clicking as the Buccaneers got out to a 12-6 lead at the 4:23 mark following baskets from Shod Fortenberry and Colton Owens off consecutive Brookhaven turnovers. Bowling Green quickly increased that lead to 18-6 on two straight 3-pointers from freshman Mack McElveen. With 2:01 left in the first quarter Brookhaven’s Bubba Keene stopped the bleeding a bit as he hit on two free throws but a Jaron Edwards 12 foot jumper and another McElveen 3-pointer gave Bowling Green a 23-8 lead after one quarter of play.
(Above) Bowling Green's attempt to tie the game fell short in the closing seconds
Brookhaven opened the second quarter with baskets from Bubba Keene and Jake Reed to trim the deficit to 23-12. Bowling Green answered with five straight points on a Dylan Varnado drive and 3 of 4 free throws from Colton Owens for the Buccaneer’s biggest lead at 28-12 with nearly two minutes gone in the quarter. At the 5:29 mark of the second quarter Owens picked up his third foul with Bowling Green up 28-14 and left the game. Just 18 seconds later Bowling Green center Shod Fortenberry was tagged with a third foul and the momentum began to swing to the Cougars. Jaron Edwards nailed a 3-pointer to put Bowling Green up 33-18 with 4:23 left in the half but Brookhaven made a furious 15-0 run that went unanswered. Jake Reed hit a 3-pointer from the wing with 2:20 left, Jamison Powell converted on one of two free throws, Reed converted a basket plus one with 1:47 remaining, Brock Smith pulled down an offensive rebound and sank a floater in the lane and then hit two free throws following a Bowling Green turnover with 23 seconds left in the half to pull the Cougars to within four points at 33-29. Bubba Keene’s steal and lay-in with 19 seconds left in the half made it 33-31 and it seemed as though the half would end with Bowling Green up two but Jake Reed rebounded a Bowling Green miss and went the length of the floor for a lay-in at the buzzer to tie the game at 33-33 as the Brookhaven fans exploded. 
(Above) Sydney Chaffin of Brookhaven gets off a jumper in the first half
Brookhaven opened the third quarter with a Jamison Powell 3-pointer from the top of the key to give the Cougars their first lead of the game at 36-33. Bowling Green’s Mack McElveen hit his fourth 3-pointer of the game to knot things up at 36-36 but the Buccaneer’s foul trouble began to mount as Shod Fortenberry drew his fourth foul with 6:25 left in the third quarter. Brookhaven held a narrow 41-40 lead after Bubba Keene hit one of two free throws with 3:28 on the clock but Bowling Green jumped on top once more at 44-41 after four straight points from McElveen. Brookhaven finished the third quarter as they did the second….with a run. Brock Smith and Bubba Keene hit buckets to put the Cougars back up 45-44 with just over a minute left in the quarter. Jamison Powell added on two free throws and Jake Reed converted a Bowling Green turnover into a basket with 3 seconds left to give Brookhaven their biggest lead at 49-44 to end the quarter.
The fourth quarter sent emotions and the intensity level up a notch as both the players and the crowd sensed that two of the best AA boy’s basketball teams were on display in a tension packed playoff atmosphere. Bowling Green struck first on a Dylan Varnado assist to Shod Fortenberry followed by a Jaron Edwards 3-pointer to tie the game at 49-49. Brock Smith converted on both ends of a one and one to put the Cougars back up 51-49 with 6:20 left to play but Bowling Green answered with two baskets from Fortenberry and a Varnado free throw for a 54-51 Buccaneer cushion with five minutes left in the game. That would be Bowling Green’s last lead as Sydney Chaffin hit a jumper from just inside the 3-point line, Jamison Powell hit a free throw and Jake Reed hit one of two free throws after being fouled by Jaron Edwards. Edwards was assessed a technical after the foul which sent him to the bench with his fifth. Reed converted on one of two technical free throws and the Cougars retained possession with just 1:32 left in the game and a 56-54 lead. The drama continued as Brookhaven turned the ball over with 47 seconds left but a Bowling Green missed shot wound up quickly down court only to have Sydney Chaffin’s shot attempt in the paint rattle out and a scramble for the ball resulted in the Cougars knocking it out of bounds giving Bowling Green possession with 18 seconds remaining.
Following a Bowling Green timeout Dylan Varnado’s drive and attempt went off side rim but Shod Fortenberry pulled down the offensive rebound and he too was unable to convert as the ball scattered into the waiting hands of Bubba Keene who sealed the game with a lay-in at the other end just as the horn sounded for a thrilling 58-54 Brookhaven win. 
(Above) Brookhaven's Jamison Powell drives on Jaron Edwards of Bowling Green
Jake Reed had a game high 20 points to lead Brookhaven, Bubba Keene added 13, Brock Smith 10, Sydney Chaffin 8 and Jamison Powell 7.
For Bowling Green Mack McElveen had 16 points, Jaron Edwards added 14, Shod Fortenberry chipped in with 10, Dylan Varnado and Colton Owens had 7 each and Dean King had 2.
“I thought Bowling Green came out more ready to play than we were,” said Brookhaven head coach Dale Watts. “They came out running and shooting well but we regrouped and got back in it by halftime and it was a dogfight the rest of the way.” When asked how these types of games prepare a team for the post-season Watts said, “We were coming off three easy games and those games often create more bad than good. We needed to see what we could do tonight, we played hard but not well, lot’s of mental mistakes.”
Brookhaven will be hosting Trinity this afternoon while Bowling Green (19-6 & 4-2) entertains Columbia in a district matchup.
BA….8….25…16….9.…58
BG…23..10..11..10….54
