The Grambling High School Kittens advance to the quarterfinals of the 2016 Allstate Sugar Bowl/LHSAA Boy’s Top 28 basketball tournament, this comes after the Kittens defeat the Block High School Bears on Tuesday, March 1 in a 55-66 showcase that kept the fans in the Frederick D. Hobdy Assembly Center enthused and attentive.
Kaedrick Williams and Tylan Dean led the Kittens. These two young stars combined for more than half of the teams points, and both ended the night with a double-double, with double digits in both points and rebounds. Junior, Dean proved not only to have a dominant inside game, but he was also reliable from mid-range and from behind the arc, as he scored 24 points.
Dean was also prominent in the board game as he amassed 11 rebounds, and exhibited unselfish play by dishing out five assists. The Max Preps’ Player of the Game, Kaedrick Williams was a force to be reckoned with, as he dominated the inside with his long arms and aggressive moves to the basket. The 6’6 senior Williams recorded 25 points and 13 rebounds leading the team in both.
The Bears were no slouch either, for a senior/junior pair who excel at the sport also led their team. senior, Anthony Barber troubled the Kittens’ defense with his savvy inside moves and nice touch at the basket. Barber left 18 points on the floor. Barber’s wingman, Chris Holmes was also a killer in the paint, but also let his presence be known from behind the arc. Holmes dropped 15 on the Kittens.
Both teams played aggressive defense the entire game, which often led to turnovers and long stretches without points for both teams. The Kittens themselves “went 10 possessions without doing anything offensively”, according to GHS head basketball coach Antonio Hudson who says “his team needs to do a better job of scoring on multiple possessions and of taking advantage of possessions.” Coach Hudson praised his team for “not unfolding after a shaky second half start”, and for “maintaining trust in the system.”
If the Kittens improve on their shortcomings and continue to do the things that make them great, then they should have no problem advancing farther into the playoffs.
The 6th seed GHS Kittens will face 3rd seed Southern Lab Kittens on Friday, March 4.