Inaugural BFK Classic a hit
(pictured above: Mount Tabor’s Doreau Jefferson snatches a rebound.) (Photos by Charles E. Leftwich Jr.)
From all indications, the Branded For Knowledge Basketball Classic is here to stay. The inaugural event attracted a loyal following from all the participating schools.
BFK is an event created solely for high school freshmen boys who attend school in Winston-Salem/Forsyth County. Through this event, participants learn the value of teamwork, while boosting their self-confidence and developing leadership skills.
Monty Gray organized the Saturday, Nov. 22 tournament.
“A lot of hard work went into making this a special event for ninth-graders,” said Monty Gray, the Classic’s director of Operations. “So many came and they left with smiles on their faces. We’re already looking for ways to make things bigger and better for next year. Every team came to the Classic to win, but there’s more to the Classic than who wins and who loses. This is a way for us to give back and help young men to become better citizens.”
Here’s a summary of the Classic match-ups held last Saturday at Glenn High School in Kernersville:
Parkland 67, Reagan 65: The final outcome wasn’t decided until the final play. Although the Mustangs were in control for most of the day, the Raiders came agonizingly close to pulling off a stunning comeback.
Zack Pascaul, voted Classic MVP, kept Reagan in contention with 37 points and teammate Walter Sellars chipped in with 13. In the end, though, it wasn’t enough.
Parkland led by double digits in the third quarter, but at the start of the fourth, Reagan trailed 55-51. Over the final three minutes, the game was tied twice, but the Mustangs took the lead for good at 65-63 on free throws by Casey Wilkins and Raequane Key.
With 20.4 seconds to go, Daniel Leal hit a pair of foul shots to push Parkland’s lead to 67-63. Reagan responded with a desperation jumper by Sellars to cut the deficit to 67-65 with 1.3 seconds remaining. On the game’s final play, Parkland inbounded the ball to Wilkins. Sellars came up with the steal, but his rushed shot attempt from 28 feet fell short of the mark.
For Parkland, Leal was the top scorer with 17 points. Wilkins added 13 points and Jaden Leslie finished with 12.
West Forsyth 57, Atkins 39: The Titans methodically added to their lead in every quarter to win convincingly. With Andrew Hall and Max Brunswick setting the tone offensively, West Forsyth started to pull away in the second quarter and the end result was a 27-17 lead at intermission.
Right before the final buzzer, the Titans added some icing to the victory when Sylvester Aikhuele took a pass in transition and made a well-timed look-away pass to Brent Warren on a fast-break basket. Warren was the high scorer for the Titans with 14 points.
Jon Haggler and Corey Rutherford scored 10 points apiece for Atkins.
East Forsyth 55, Reynolds 29: A 16-4 second-quarter outburst was all the Eagles needed to settle the issue. By forcing turnovers and controlling the boards at both ends of the court, East Forsyth dominated the action.
By the start of the fourth quarter, East Forsyth had built a commanding 49-22 lead. Leading the way for the Eagles was Shemar Watkins, who tossed in a game-high 26 points. The leading scorer for Reynolds was E. Trevis, who finished with 10 points.
Mount Tabor 70, Glenn 25: The Spartans put their collective foot on the gas pedal from the opening tip and they never let up. The game got out of hand early as Mount Tabor’s defense and frantic pace produced a 22-6 cushion by the end of the first quarter.
Isaial Wilkins was the key factor for the Spartans at both ends. When he wasn’t scoring on fast-break baskets, he grabbed rebounds and made the outlet passes which led to points in transition for Mount Tabor. Wilkins finished with 17 points and Theaon Joe contributed 10 points to the cause.
Glenn had trouble gaining any semblance of offensive consistency. The Bobcats were held to single-digits scoring in every quarter. Dominique Jones was the top scorer for Glenn with seven points.
