As much as coach Steve Redman has learned about his Signal Mountain boys' basketball team in the season's first two months, he may have learned just as much over the first two days of the Times Free Press Best of Preps tournament at Chattanooga State.
On Friday, the Eagles proved they can turn the page quickly from a disappointing loss and respond with an inspired effort against a quality opponent.
After building a 10-point lead in the first quarter and maintaining a double-digit advantage into the third, Signal Mountain held off a late Brainerd rally to win 54-53 in the consolation bracket and advance to Saturday's fifth-place game.
"I thought we played really hard and with a lot of energy, especially early," said Redman, whose team competed well before eventually falling 70-52 to McCallie in Thursday's opening round. "That's not always easy when you play a morning game, but they bounced back and that's a credit to our kids."
Although Brainerd closed within one with just less two minutes to go, the Panthers could never wrestle the lead away.
"We just went cold at a bad time," Redman said. "Ultimately, basketball comes down to being able to score, and we hit a stretch there where we were still getting good looks but couldn't make the shot. But we found a way in the end.
"Through the first half of the season, I think we've shown that we can be a really good team. We still haven't hit our stride where everybody is hitting on all cylinders at the same time, but when we do, we can be really tough."
The Eagles improved to 10-6 overall. Regardless of their Best of Preps finish, they will begin the new year atop the TSSAA District 6-AAA standings with a 4-0 record, having beaten Soddy-Daisy, Red Bank, East Ridge and Central in league play.
Chris Kennedy led Signal Mountain with 14 points, including both 3-pointers made by his team, while Josh Thompson scored seven of his 12 points in the first half and Andrew Matucewicz, who recently surpassed 1,000 points for his career, added 10 for the Eagles.
Brainerd's Ashton Munson scored a game-high 18 points, with all but seven of that total coming in the second half, while Trea Shaw had 14 and Kendrick Jones 13 for the Panthers (3-9).
Red Bank boys 82, East Hamilton 48: Despite missing two starters, the Lions (12-3) were in command from start to finish, jumping out to a 24-9 lead in the first quarter, then continuing to pull away while advancing to the fifth-place game. Red Bank and Signal Mountain are set for a 2:30 p.m. tipoff Saturday.
Brayden Stewart led four double-digit scorers for Red Bank with 21 points, including five 3-pointers. Jaylen Rice added 17 points, Anthony Bonner 12 and D.J. Wilbur 11. Wilbur hit three of the 11 3-pointers made by the Lions, who were 9-of-12 on free throws.
Peyton Harris led East Hamilton (2-13) with 21 points, including five 3-pointers, while Anderson Dawson finished with nine points, all on 3-pointers.
The Hurricanes and Brainerd will meet in the seventh-place game at 11:30 a.m. Saturday.
Baylor girls 60, Red Bank 13: Although in the unfamiliar role of playing in the consolation bracket, the Lady Red Raiders bounced back from their first-round loss to Signal Mountain in impressive fashion. Baylor (4-7) raced out to an 18-4 first-quarter lead against Red Bank, then ended all doubt with a 19-0 second quarter.
Holly Merritt's 12 points and Riley Oleksik's 10 led Baylor, with a dozen players scoring in all for the Lady Red Raiders.
Red Bank (2-10), which lost to Tyner in overtime during the opening round, was led by Brooklyn Ervin and Malika Odum, who each finished with four points.
Meigs County girls 64, LFO 28: The Lady Tigers built an eight-point advantage in the first quarter and led throughout. After steadily building a double-digit lead by halftime, Meigs County (9-5) put the game way with an 18-3 third-quarter run.
Alexis Kranz nearly equaled Lakeview-Fort Oglethorpe's scoring output by herself, finishing with 21 points, including five 3-pointers. Ainsley King and Taylor McHone each added seven points for Meigs, and Lainey Fitzgerald connected on a pair of 3-pointers.
The Lady Warriors (5-5), who were held to single-digit scoring in all but the fourth quarter, were led by Christal Collins' 11 points.
LFO and Red Bank will begin Saturday's competition with their seventh-place game at 10 a.m., and Baylor and Meigs will match up with fifth place on the line at 1 p.m.
Contact Stephen Hargis at shargis@timesfreepress.com.