Wooddale advances to Class AA semifinals with win over Austin-East

MURFREESBORO — Wooddale coach Keelon Lawson said it feels good to be back in the state tournament coaching a pair of his sons. The last time he was here coaching his two older sons, Dedric and KJ, their Hamilton team lost in the 2014 Class AAA quarterfinals.

This time, younger sons Chandler and Johnathan led Wooddale to its first state tournament win in school history. The Cardinals cruised to a 79-61 Class AA quarterfinal victory over Austin-East at MTSU's Murphy Center. 

"It’s deja vu. It seems like we have the same two players," Keelon said. "Sometimes I catch myself calling Johnathan KJ. So its like deja vu. Hopefully I can win one with these guys."

The Cardinals (31-4) had four scorers in double figures, including Oregon signee Chandler Lawson, who led all scorers with 20 points.

"It’s a blessing to make history at Wooddale and put my name in the books," Chandler said of the win. "When I get older, I’ll come back and look at the history of what I’ve done in high school." 

Austin-East coach Marcus Stanton said he was impressed by the 6-foot-8 Chandler's knowledge of when to shoot outside jumpers and when to attack the post. 

"He’s a great shooter, and the good thing is that he can handle the ball well. He didn’t crack under pressure," Stanton said of Chandler. "And he understands when it's crunch time, where to go with his game. Like, he understood, ‘OK, we’ve taken enough outside shots; it’s time to take my game inside,’ and that was impressive.

Among the other Wooddale standouts were Alvin Miles, who had 19 points on 7-of-10 shooting; Jonathan Duncan, who hit four 3-pointers and finished with 19 points; and Kevin Brown, who scored 15. 

"Everybody thinks this team just revolves around Chandler," Keelon said. "Over the year, we’ve gotten better and better, and other guys have been stepping up. Everybody focuses on Chandler, and it gives the other guys an opportunity to step up and show their talent just as well."

Chandler, who previously won three-state titles at East, said that his experience will help him lead the team. Miles, who was on the Whitehaven team that lost to East in last year's Class AAA state title game, said his advice to the younger Cardinals is to focus on what they do well. 

"I just told the ones that haven’t been here before, ‘Just play your game.’ You’ve got to be focused and locked in," Miles said. "Every team down here is here for a reason. Every team is good, so just get focused and be ready.”

Wooddale will play again at 11:30 a.m. Friday in the Class AA semifinals against Brainerd (23-10).

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