Going for the title: Southeast stuns No. 1 team in region, advances to play for region championship

Published 12:31 am Friday, February 8, 2019

It’s been 19 years since a Southeast Whitfield High School boys basketball team played in a region championship game, but on Thursday night the Raiders ended that streak.

Playing in front of a raucous home crowd, Southeast (13-14) defeated LaFayette (23-2) 68-55 in a game the Raiders controlled from the opening tip. Both of LaFayette’s losses this season have come at the hands of the Raiders who used a balanced attack and sound defense to frustrate the Ramblers, who were ranked No. 1 in the region.

The Raiders play for the region championship tonight at 8:30 at home against Heritage. Southeast qualified for the state tournament earlier this week.

“We (were) their only loss all season and we game-planned for what they had,” Southeast coach Ben Oliver said. “That’s a dang good team we beat tonight. I think we proved to everyone here that we’re just as good as they are.”

Led by Andrew Fowler’s three first quarter 3-pointers, Southeast jumped out to a 11-0 lead to start the game and held a 14-9 lead at the end of the first quarter. Point guard Austin Brock controlled the game offensively for Southeast and finished with seven points, three assists and two steals in the first half. Brock’s basket plus the foul at the end of the second quarter gave Southeast a 35-20 lead heading into the halftime locker room.

“I think we finally saw what we are capable of tonight,” Oliver said. “All the stuff that you do throughout the season, all those two- and three-point losses, they prepare you for a game like tonight.”

The Raiders kept the pressure on in the third quarter. Zac Cole, who finished the first half with five points, began to find his rhythm in the second half along with his passing touch. Cole finished with a team-high 17 points and six assists as Southeast was able to use their big man to open up opportunities for its shooters and slashers. After Cole scored on a basket plus the foul at the end of the third quarter, Southeast held a 21-point lead at 54-33.

LaFayette did not go quietly, however. The Ramblers nailed three fourth quarter 3-pointers and forced Southeast into multiple turnovers, closing the lead to eight points with less than one minute to play. The hole was too big to climb out of, however, as the Raiders iced the win on the foul line. Brock finished with 15 points, while Fowler and Bryce Stanley each finished with 13 points.

It was a complete victory on both ends for the Raiders, which have the opportunity now to place this year’s team on a banner in the gym’s rafters.

“There’s a banner out here for boys basketball, and I asked our guys at the beginning of the season what it was going to say at the end of the season,” Oliver said. “Was it going to say we made the playoffs, we were region runner-up or we were region champion? We’re going for champions.”