Coach Rickey McCullough’s Region 1-AAAA South Sub-Region champion Bainbridge High School Bearcats basketball team improved their record to 23-4 Friday night.
They did it with a regular-season-ending 73-48 senior night victory over the Randolph Clay High School Red Devils.
The Bearcats, who are 6-0 and the top seed in Region 1-AAAA South, played Warner Robins, the No. 4 seed in Region 1-AAAA North, Tuesday night in the first round of the Region 1AAAA tournament at Northside-Columbus High School. That game was not completed at press time, and coverage will be in the Saturday, Feb. 18, edition of The Post-Searchlight and online at www.thepostsearchlight.com.
After a day off today, the tournament semifinals and finals will be Thursday and Friday.
Last Friday’s game was close early. Trea Kelly hit a layup off the right glass with 5:24 left in the first quarter to give the Bearcats a 10-4 lead.
Consecutive buckets by Paul Chukes and Rodney Glenn pushed the lead out to double digits at 16-5, with 3:38 left in the frist. The Bearcats were still ahead, 23-13, at the end of the first quarter.
Shaquille Nunally, who led the Red Devils with 20 points, hit a layup off the right glass with 16 seconds left in the second quarter to pull them to within five, 36-31, at halftime.
The Bearcats opened the third quarter with a 5-0 scoring run to go up by double digits, 41-31.
They were out front, 49-36, at the end of the quarter. Greg Lee hit a layup off the right glass with 1:45 left in the game to give the Bearcats a commanding 70-44 lead.
Chukes led the Bearcats with 20 points.
McCullough said he thought Friday’s big win over Randolph Clay was a good tuneup for this week’s Region 1-AAAA Tournament.
“We played hard and hit some clutch shots,” he said after the game. “Now we have to do the same thing in the Region 1-AAAA Tournament.”

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