Henderson sparks White County over Bradley

Something seemed a little off about Kordell Henderson.

Henderson, a 6-foot-6 senior wing who is getting looks at colleges ranging from Tennessee Tech to King University, missed layups, putbacks and a free throw.

He rarely missed in the second half, though, and led White County to a 53-45 victory over Bradley Central in the Region 3-AAA boys' championship game Saturday night at Ooltewah.

Henderson led all players with 29 points, including 23 after halftime when his team trailed. He outscored Bradley Central's team 13-2 in the third quarter.

"We came out of halftime together and worked as a team," Henderson said. "In the first half, I missed layups and my post game wasn't working."

That changed in the second half when he scored from down low on the Warriors' first possession.

"I got started in the post. Then I drove a little. Then I got my 3-point (shooting) going," said Henderson, who propelled the Warriors into a home sectional Tuesday night. The loss sent the Bears (22-9) on the road to face Blackman (23-5) on Tuesday.

"They're a disciplined team. They run the Princeton-style offense with backdoor cuts and V-cuts," Bradley coach Chuck Clark said of his next opponent. "We like to go a little bit faster. We tried to pick it up tonight. But the deeper you go in playoffs, the more difficult it is to press teams."

Bradley Central had a more balanced allotment of points Friday. Cole Copeland led the Bears with 13 points while teammates Tucker Maroon and Ty Morgan each scored 11. Cade Crosland helped Henderson by scoring 13 points, with 11 coming in the first half.

Bradley closed the first quarter on an 8-2 run over the final three minutes to lead 19-9 through eight minutes. White County cut into the lead during the second quarter. The Warriors headed to their locker room trailing 30-23 following a steal and a layup by Henderson.

The Bears were 6-of-6 from the free-throw line and hit four 3-pointers while limiting the Warriors to one free-throw attempt.

Bradley Central's advantage evaporated.

"Henderson took over," Copeland said. "We couldn't handle his presence. I don't know if we were soft. We'll figure it out."

The Warriors opened the second half with a 7-0 run -- all from Henderson -- and tied the game one of Henderson's drives.

Henderson continued his control of the third and gave White County a 36-32 lead going into the final stanza.

The Bears pulled within 39-38 with five minutes to play, but they couldn't get closer as White County made 12 of 14 free throws down the stretch.

"Sometimes you live and die by the 3 ball, and tonight was not a good night," Clark said. "It wasn't a good half for us, especially the third quarter."

Contact David Uchiyama at duchiyama@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6484. Follow him at twitter.com/UchiyamaCTFP

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