Hampton opened the BlueCross Basketball Championships with a statement.
The Bulldogs pulled away late in the first quarter and never looked back in a 71-48 Class A Quarterfinal win over Humboldt on Wednesday inside the Murphy Center in Murfreesboro.
With the win, Hampton advanced to Friday’s semifinals where they will take on Chattanooga Prep with a spot in Saturday’s Championship.
After Geno Carrico opened the scoring with a jumper in the paint, the Vikings used a quick 6-0 run to take the lead.
Cadon Buckles snapped the run with a 3-pointer, but Humboldt was able to answer with a lay-up on the other end. Michael Anspaugh hit a pair of free throws, and that sparked a 15-3 Hampton run that gave the Bulldogs a 22-11 lead after a quarter of play.
The teams traded points to open the second stanza before Carrico hit a lay-up and Anspaugh hit back-to-back 3-pointers to push the HHS lead to 17.
Hampton was able to maintain a 38-23 advantage at the half.
The Bulldogs left no doubt in the third.
Buckles scored the first six points of the half, while Anspaugh added a pair of 3-pointers as Hampton pushed the lead to 23 points in the open minutes of the third quarter.
From there, it was all Hampton as the Bulldogs rolled into the semifinals.
Buckles had 29 points to lead the way for Hampton, while Anspaugh and Carrico had 15 and 14 points, respectively.
Hayden Cambell and Dylan Trivett added six and four points apiece.
Frederick Moore led Humboldt with 23 points.
Photos by Tanner Cook
