Miller, Owens lead Chapman boys past Centurions
INMAN — The race for playoff positioning in Region III-3A got a little tougher on Wednesday night.
Broome’s girls overcame a double-digit second half deficit to take a dramatic win over Chapman, defeating the Panthers 57-51. The win broke a tie for fourth place between the two teams, moving Broome into a tie for third with Clinton, with both teams sitting at 3-3 in the region. Newberry is two games clear of the field at 6-0, while Woodruff is 4-2 in second place.
After leading for much of the first half, Broome saw the lead evaporate as Chapman put together an 8-0 run to grab a 24-16 lead. The Panthers had a 26-20 advantage at the half, and extended the lead to 10 points midway through the third quarter.
Broome began to chip away at the margin in the late stages of the third, tying the game at 36-36 with 30 seconds to play in the frame. Chapman crept back in front by seven on 3-pointers from Isies Moore and Paige Aho, but Broome would answer and tie the game 49-49 with 3:26 to play.
The Centurions scored six straight points to take a 55-49 lead with less than a minute to play, led by three from Caroline Hopper in the run. Bre Mabry pulled Chapman to within four points on the Panthers’ next possession, but Broome got a basket by Mackenzie Mahoney with 15 seconds remaining to put the game away.
“Last night we went to Mid-Carolina and had a tough game down there, and to come back tonight and rebound and fight as hard as we did, I’m just so proud of them,” Broome coach Sally Sprouse-Anderson said. We lost two starters, and we had some girls really step up for us. Ashley Jolley played well. Mackenzie Mahoney did a great job of battling inside and taking whatever was thrown at her and continuing to rebound and play tough. We’re definitely growing up, and we’re getting better.”
Yasmin Hassan led Broome with 15 points, while Mahoney chipped in 12 for the Centurions. LaNya Lee added 10.
Mabry and Aho each had 11 points for Chapman, while Destinee Bacote added 10.
BOYS
Chapman 70, Broome 64: In the boys game, the Panthers hit 15 3-pointers, including seven from Shaundre Miller and six from Isayah Owens, and held off a late Broome charge for the victory.
Miller hit five 3s in the first half as the Panthers built a 40-31 halftime advantage. His shot from long-distance at the third-quarter buzzer gave Chapman a 13-point lead.
But the Centurions came storming back in the fourth. Back-to-back 3-pointers by David Miller and Khalil Stringer cut the lead to 62-58, and the Centurions pulled to within three at 64-61 on Keonta O’Fair’s old-fashioned three-point play. But they could get no closer down the stretch, and Chapman made key free throws in the final minutes to put the game away.
Shaundre Miller led Chapman with 24 points. Owens added 22 in the victory.
Stringer led Broome with a game-high 26, including 14 points in the first quarter. David Miller added 18 and O’Fair had 12 for the Centurions.