Paul VI High School from Chantilly, Virginia has won the 39th Annual Bass Pro Shops Tournament of Champions, defeating St. John Bosco out of Bellflower, California 71-53 Saturday night at Great Southern Bank Arena in Springfield.
The tournament drew a three day total crowd of 23,598 fans.
The Panthers, ranked number one in the nation in the latest Max Preps Top 25 high school boys basketball poll, wins the T of C for the second time in the last three years (2022) and the third time overall.
St. John Bosco played its best eight minutes in the opening quarter, trailing the Panthers 15-14 going into the second frame.
But Paul VI opened up a 38-24 halftime advantage after several steals and breakaway slam dunks in the second quarter.
They were never headed in the second half, as the turbo clock kicked in for the early minutes of the fourth quarter with Paul VI maintaining a 30+ point lead.
Tournament MVP Darren Harris, who is the 43rd ranked player in the nation and committed to playing college basketball at Duke, scored 23 points on 8-11 shooting for the Panthers.
Paul VI picked up 12 steals in the game and outscored the Braves 16-5 in fast break points.
Brandon McCoy led all players with 27 points for Bosco in a losing effort.
McEachern High School (Powder Springs, Georgia) pulled out a 61-59 win over Edmond North (Edmond, Oklahoma) in the 3rd place game.
Ace Bailey hit a jumper with six seconds left in the game to win it for the Indians after Dylan Warlick tied the contest 59-59 with 21 seconds remaining.
Bailey led all scorers with 31 points for McEachern, while Warlick’s 28 points led Edmond North, who lost an eight point lead going into the fourth quarter.
Springfield Central made it back-to-back victories over the Glendale Falcons in just over two weeks on the hardwood at Great Southern Bank Arena, winning 68-46 in the 7th place game.
Central also beat Glendale 77-47 at The Vault on December 29th in the Gold Division finals at the Greenwood Blue and Gold Tournament.
The Falcons led Saturday’s rematch 14-11 after one quarter before being outscored 23-10 in the second period to trail by ten going into the locker room at halftime.
Glendale pulled within five of the lead, 34-29, with 6:54 left in the 3rd quarter, but a quick 7-0 run had the Bulldogs up by 12 and they never looked back, outscoring the Falcons 20-7 in the final period.
Tayshaun Wells, who has received offers to play college basketball at Drury University and Arkansas Tech, scored 20 points on 9-11 shooting to lead the Bulldogs, with Tyrique Brooks adding 18.
Amare Witham led three Glendale players in double figure scoring with 14 points.
In the consolation final, St. Louis Vashon downed Rainier Beach from Seattle, Washington 70-50.
Vashon led throughout, turning a 20-15 lead after one quarter into a 31-19 advantage at the half before going up by 15 after three quarters.
Trey Williams, Junior led the way for Tony Irons’ Wolverines, scoring 14 points. Jordyn Richard scored 13, and Christian Williams added 12 points.
Kaden Powers’ 17 points were tops for Rainier Beach.
Here are the scores from Saturday’s championship round of the 39th Bass Pro Tournament of Champions:
Final: 7th Place Game: Springfield Central 68, Springfield Glendale 46
Final: Consolation Finals: St. Louis Vashon 70, Rainier Beach 50
Great Southern Bank Slam Dunk Contest: Christian Williams of Vashon, Maceo Rivers from Rainier Beach, Tyrique Brooks of Central, and Paul VI’s Isaiah Abraham advanced to the finals, with Brooks earning all 10’s in the final round to take the trophy.
Final: 3rd Place Game: McEachern 61, Edmond North 59
Final: Championship Game: Paul VI 71, St. John Bosco 53
All-Tournament Team:
Amare Witham—Glendale High School
Tyrique Brooks—Central High School
Kaden Powers—Rainier Beach High School
Nicholas Randall—Vashon High School
Dylan Warlick—Edmond North High School
Chiante Tramble—Edmond North High School
Airious “Ace” Bailey—McEachern High School
Brandon McCoy—St. John Bosco High School
Elzie Harrington—St. John Bosco High School
Garett Sundra—Paul VI High School
Benjamin Hammond—Paul VI High School
Most Valuable Player:
Darren Harris: Paul VI
Special Awards:
Father John Savage Award: Isaiah Abraham, Paul VI
Dr. Edsel Matthews Sportsmanship Award: Edmond North High School, Coach Scott Norris
