Chane Brown’s first season coaching Hilton Head High’s boys is approaching legendary status.
In a game that was suddenly slipping away, the Seahawk boys fought back and held off a hot-shooting Beaufort team 76-68 Friday night to improve to 4-1 in the region. Coupled with Bluffton’s dramatic win over Colleton County, the win brought Hilton Head even with the Cougars, setting up a winner-take-all region championship game Tuesday night in Walterboro.
“We just stuck with it. It wasn’t pretty but the guys buckled down, played good defense, and got rebounds when we needed it,” Brown said. “Then we knocked down the free throws at the end.”
It certainly looked like the Seahawks were going to run away with this one early, as they rattled off 21 points in the first quarter, including a pair of Gaston Moore threes. It was the offense that stole the show early on, with Sam Summa and Moore settling into their roles as post player and outside shooter.
Hilton Head led by as many as 12 well into the second period, but with Summa in foul trouble the Beaufort offense kept the Eagles within striking distance, as two threes from Rush Riley and a couple trips to the foul line cut the lead to seven at halftime.
After the lead was stretched back up to 12, the Eagles found their stroke and finished the third quarter down by just one after Riley drained a miraculous last-second three. Riley sank yet another triple in the fourth to give the Eagles a two-point lead, but the Seahawks did not roll over.
They fought right back and put the ball in the hands of their go-to players: Summa and Moore. With a strong effort at both ends of the floor — highlighted by clutch shots, high-percentage fast break layups, and a loud Summa block on the defensive side — the Seahawks took the lead back, and they took it for good. Beaufort kept knocking down shots in the final seconds, but a late technical foul killed any chance of a comeback.Â
Moore, fresh off his National Signing Day commitment to play quarterback at UCF, led his team with a huge 23 points. Summa put up 16, followed by Dean Seelbach with 11 and Alex Smith with 10.
“We started off quick, then we all picked it back up in the fourth as a team and ended up getting it done,” Summa said. “Coach emphasized closing out on the screens where Rush was getting all of his threes, and that helped us push through at the end.”
The Seahawks certainly emphasized getting to the foul line, as they made 27 of 36 free throws in the victory.
“Credit to those guys for making the free throws when we needed to at the end,” Brown said. “In fact, our last 13 points all came from the line.”
Riley led the Eagles with 21, including five three-pointers. Ollie Holmes was next with 15. With the loss combined with Bluffton’s win, the Eagles were eliminated from playoff contention.
For Brown and the Seahawks, it is now a date with destiny and a chance seemingly out of nowhere to grab the region title next week.
UP NEXT
Hilton Head (14-7, 4-1) plays at Colleton County at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday.
Beaufort (5-19, 0-5) hosts Bluffton at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday.Â
Story by Wes Kerr / Photos by MB Lyons
