In a battle of top 10 teams, the Bradwell Institute Lady Tigers found a way to come out on top — and now sit alone atop the Region 1-AAAAA girls basketball standings.  

The Lady Tigers, ranked No. 7 in the state, rallied from an 11-point deficit to beat No. 9-ranked Statesboro 45-36 Tuesday at the Bradwell gym. Bradwell improved to 16-1 on the season and 4-0 in the region. The Lady Blue Devils fell to 3-1 in region play and 14-2 overall.  

“We had a big lead but let them back in the game,” said SHS coach Marty Holder. “We struggled at the line and went 6-22 and started making bad passes. We were missing layups and when we got fouled, we couldn’t take advantage. I feel like that was a learning experience. Losing early gives us a chance at making adjustments and still make a region title run.” 

Reya Johnson had a hand in Statesboro’s first 10 points, either scoring or assisting on each basket. Alyssa Staten’s basket off an inbounds pass gave the Lady Blue Devils an 18-8 cushion, prompting Bradwell coach Faye Baker to call a timeout with 6:18 left in the first half. A free throw put Statesboro ahead 19-8.  

Statesboro led 22-14 at intermission, and Staten’s basket to open the second half gave the Lady Devils a 10-point lead. Bradwell’s defense took over after that, with Baker going to a zone to counter the Lady Devils’ size.  

Lindsay Johnson’s layup put Statesboro ahead 26-20 but the Lady Tigers closed the quarter on a 10-3 run, taking their first lead of the game when Parris Parham turned Kaydence Kern’s pass into a 3-pointer with 55 seconds remaining.  

Parham’s free throws stretched the lead to 41-33 before Johnson connected on a 3 of her own. The Lady Tigers put the game away on two Janiyah Blevins free throws and a Blevins layup off a steal with less than two minutes left.  

Staten and Johnson each had 10 points for the Lady Blue Devils who next up travel to Ware County on Saturday.  

In the boy’s game Statesboro’s poor shooting night dug a canyon of an early hole for the Blue Devils. The host Bradwell Institute Tigers opened up an early double-digit lead and never trailed in posting a 57-49 win Tuesday night in Hinesville in a battle for first place in the region. 

“At the end of the day we failed to execute,” said coach Keith LeGree. “We fouled too much and gave them way too many free throws. We need to be able to pressure this team and I think we gave Bradwell too much respect. They are a good team but I feel with apply more pressure through the whole game we can beat them when we get them at home.” 

Bradwell improved to 16-1 on the year and 4-0 in Region 1-AAAAA as the Devils fell to 12-3 for the season and 3-1 in the region.  

Tyon Jones’ layup pushed Bradwell to a 14-2 lead in the first quarter, and the Tigers’ lead swelled to as much as 18 on Dakari Pasley’s bucket for a 34-16 advantage. 

The Devils began to find the mark from 3-point range, with DJ Brown connecting on two and Raylin Grant added another. Camdyn Wilkerson added a three-point play as Statesboro closed to within 43-36.  

Two more 3s — one each from Wilkeson and Kam Mikell — brought the Devils within 51-47, but Chris Perry’s putback slam pushed the lead back to six.  

The Tigers made 19 of 26 free throws in the game and were 4 of 6 in the final minute. Grant paced the Devils with 18 points and Wilkerson had 14 points.