Irmo fights back, earns spot in Chick-fil-A Classic final for first time since 2010
Playing in its first Chick-fil-A Classic in more than a decade, the Irmo basketball team will get a chance to win a championship.
The Yellow Jackets defeated Lexington, 67-58, In the semifinals of the American Bracket on Wednesday at River Bluff High School. Irmo will play Archbishop Stefanic (NY) for the bracket title on Thursday at 8:40 p.m.
Irmo is making its first appearance in the tournament since 2010 when it went 3-0 and won the Classic II championship. The Yellow Jackets are trying to become the first SC team to win multiple tournament championships.
“To get to a championship in the Chick-fil-A, it is important,” Irmo coach Tim Whipple said. “It means something to the kids and for me.”
It has been a special month for Whipple, who won his 800th game earlier this month against Chapin.
Senior guard Dylan Williams led Irmo with 27 points and 10 rebounds. Brandon Crawford added 15 points and Juice Kiett had 12.
Irmo fell behind as many as 10 points in the first quarter as Lexington started the game strong from the outside. Sophomore guard Cam Scott had 12 of his 21 points in the first and Wildcats hit five of their 10 3-pointers in the first.
Lexington led 51-48 with 4:06 left but Irmo went on an 8-0 with seven points coming from Williams to take a 56-51 lead with 2:28 left.
“We played hard,” Whipple said. “One thing this team does a good job of is handling adversity. We stayed with it. We kept fighting and didn’t allow mistakes and missed opportunities to affect us.I’m proud of them.”
The Wildcats got within 56-54 on a 3-pointer by Coulter Bell but that is as close as they got. Bell finished with 19 points
:Lexington will play Grayson in a third-place game on Thursday at 3:50 p.m.
Chick-fil-A Classic
American Bracket
Carmel Christian (NC) 66, Keenan (SC) 55
CC: Krawaczyk 4, Kaleb Siler 14, Bean 3, Cade Tyson 22, Threatt 8, S. Smith 3, Howard 1, Arias 8, B. Smith 3. K: Echols 4, Olyn Knox 11, Amarri King 14, Oree 8, Sumpter 8, Gipson 6, Price 2, Gilyard 2.
John Marshall (Va.) 54, River Bluff (SC) 41
JM: Thompson 7, Robertson 7, Dennis Parker 19, Stinson 5, Kashawn Cordes 13, Bailey 3. RB: Meyers 8, Thompson 7, Preston Hearn 14, Renner 1, Wilson 5, Whitt 6.
Archbishop Stepinac (NY) 72, Grayson (Ga.) 64 (OT)
G: Wiggins 5, Ogelsby 2, Amir Taylor 12, Tyrese Elliott 26, Blackwell 6, Christian 4, Fox 4, Gatlin 5. AS: Isaiah Alexander 10, Danny Carbuccia 15, Samuel Gibbs 19, Baez 5, Little 7, Braylan Ritvo 16.
Irmo (SC) 67, Lexington (SC) 58
I: Binyard 5, Summons 6, Brandon Crawford 15, Dylan Williams 27, Juice Kiett 12, Green 2. L: Maxwell 3, Jose Figueroa 13, Coulter Bell 19, Cam Scott 21, Mollahan 2.
Thursday
Keenan (SC) vs. River Bluff (SC), 10:50 a.m.
Carmel Christian (NC) vs. John Marshall (Va.), 12:30 p.m.
Grayson (Ga.) vs. Lexington (SC), 3:50 p.m.
Archbishop Stepinac (NY) vs. Irmo (SC), 8:40 p.m.
National Bracket
Wednesday
St. Frances Academy (Md.) 55, Legacy Early College (SC) 54
SFA: Johnson 4, Lindsay 7, Daquan Davis 20, Jahnathan Lemothe 12, Carrington 6, Robinson 6. LEC: Coen Carr 22, Smith Jr. 9, Hodges 2, Zaylan Chaney 15, Arnold 4, Hawkins 2.
Huntington Prep (WV) 62 Ridge View (SC) 52
HP: Ronald Jessamy 19, Muodar 9, Seth Hubbard 10, Trentyn Flowers 10, Maki Johnson 12, Finkley 2. RV: GG Jackson 24, Rivers 2. Moultrie 8, Gamar Powers 11, Smith 5, Squirewell 2.
Dream City (Ariz) 61, Denver Prep (Colo.) 47
DP: Baye Fall 20, Diop 2, Lewis Jr. 5, Justin Daniels 17, Gorosito 3. DC: David Tubek 23, Phillips 8, Green 5, Pickens 2, Milos Uzan 20, Milicevic 3.
Prolific Prep (Calif.) 72, Liberty Heights (NC) 62
LH: Hedgepath 2, Tajuan Simpkins 15, Takai Simpkins 11, Chas Stinson 24, Wilkerson 6, Nelson 2, Dow 2. PP: Dabo 9, Adem Bona 12, MJ Rice 20, Pope 6, Tre White 13, Seck 7, Sensley 5
Thursday
Legacy Early College (SC) vs. Ridge View (SC), 9:10 a.m.
St. Frances Academy (Md.) vs. Huntington Prep (WV), 2 p.m.
Denver Prep (Colo.) vs. Liberty Heights (NC), 5:20 p.m.
Dream City (Ariz.) vs. Prolific Prep (Calif.), 7 p.m.
This story was originally published December 29, 2021 at 11:20 PM.
