The first semifinal of Sectional 10 saw two fierce rivals square off as Lawrence North battled township foe Lawrence Central.
The Bears would hang on to advance to their first sectional final since 2016 thanks to the sophomore combination of D’
Andre Davis and
Nijel Pack. The pair would combined for 33 points on 12/22 shooting as Lawrence Central withstood every late charge from Lawrence North.
Junior
Jacob LaRavia was big off the bench for LC, as the 6’6 forward added nine points on a variety of high effort plays around the rim.
Mike Saunders was the leader for Lawrence North, as the sophomore point guard was in attack mode from the opening tip. Saunders had a team high 16 points and five assists as he made the rim his destination time and time again.
Jared Hankins had 10 of his 12 in the second half and
Kevin Easley added 8 points and 12 rebounds in his final high school game.
Lawrence North ends their season at 18-7 while Lawrence Central moves on to the sectional championship.
In the second semifinal, Warren Central held back a feisty North Central team that would not go away to claim a spot in Saturday night’s sectional final. It took a phenomenal game from junior guard
David Bell to hold off the Panthers. Bell had a double double with 23 points and 10 rebounds along with 5 assists and 4 steals.
Joe Rush came off the bench to score 15 points for the Warriors.
The top ranked squad in 4A gained a bit of breathing room in the third and early fourth quarter as their lead reached as high as seven points. Their patented suffocating defense forced North Central into hurried shots and turnovers. The Panthers would make a final push behind senior guards Davon Bradley and Caleb Pack, closing within two points late in the fourth.
David Bell and
Dean Tate would go 7/8 from the free throw line down the stretch to close the door and remain unbeaten.
North Central finishes at 7-15 while Warren Central moves on to face conference rival Lawrence Central in the sectional championship Saturday night.
North Central 14 16 8 22 - 60
Warren Central 17 13 15 20 - 65
North Central:
Donald Lee 19 points (7/13 FGs, 1/2 3Ps, 4/5 FTs); Davon Bradley 16 points (5/5 FGs, 1/1 3Ps, 5/6 FTs); Caleb Pack 14 points (5/11 FGs, 3/6 3Ps, 1/2 FTs); Ty’Riek Johnson 7 points (1/6 FGs, 1/2 3Ps, 4/4 FTs); Michael Rogers 2 points; Brennan Winters 2 points
Warren Central:
David Bell 23 points (8/12 FGs, 7/10 FTs), 10 rebs, 5 asts, 4 stls;
Joe Rush 15 points;
Dean Tate 8 points (2/4 FGs, 1/3 3Ps, 3/4 FTs), 2 stls;
Jesse Bingham 8 points;
Antwaan Cushingberry 6 points (2/5 FGs, 2/2 FTs), 5 asts;
Jakobie Robinson 5 points (1/3 FGs, 3/3 FTs)
Lawrence Central 10 13 14 20 - 57
Lawrence North 13 5 18 16 - 52