Summerville - For the first time since the 2007-08 season, the Summerville boys basketball program has reached the Lower State finals.
Summerville will play Lexington on Friday night in the Class AAAAA Lower State championship game at the Florence Civic Center. The second-ranked Green Wave (25-2) advanced on Tuesday night with a 53-36 win over No. 3 St. James High.
Senior Yannick Smith led all scorers with 23 points while junior Melvin Teal added 15 to send the Green Wave to the semi-finals of the AAAAA state playoffs.
Summerville advanced to the third round last season, their first trip that deep into the playoffs since the state championship team of 2007-08, but lost to Goose Creek at home.
“I think a lot of people doubted us so we had to come in and show we belonged,” said Teal, who was injured in last year’s third round game. “This means a lot to everyone.”
Summerville started slowly and fell behind by 14-6 with 1:20 left in the opening quarter. But the second quarter was pure domination. The Green Wave went on a 20-0 run over the next seven minutes, taking a 26-14 lead with 1:45 remaining before halftime.
Teal had 12 points in the second quarter while Smith added nine points. But the difference was on the defensive end. St. James wilted to Summerville’s wave of pressure, committing turnovers on their first six possessions of the second quarter.
“I think we were a little tight early but we hung in there,” Summerville coach David Long said. “We were able to create some pressure with the traps, got some easy baskets in transition. The second quarter was pretty solid. We had the answers and had too many athletes. We had to really challenge our guys to match their physicality and the guys responded.”
Lexington defeated Sumter in the other Lower State semi-final. The top-ranked Wildcats improved to 27-2 on the season. Lexington defeated Summerville, 68-63, in a game played on Jan. 2.
“We certainly competed with them and we all sort of felt we would get another shot at them,” Long said. “I’m really proud of this team. Last year didn’t work out for us but we were able to turn our attention to this season and we managed to survive through the ups and downs. This group of guys deserve this opportunity.”
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