Midland Valley basketball wins playoff game stopped for smoke scare
It took an extra day but the Midland Valley boys basketball team is moving on in the playoffs.
The Mustangs defeated Brookland-Cayce, 66-60, in the first round of the Class 4A playoffs on Wednesday. Midland Valley will travel to top-seeded Gray Collegiate on Saturday.
The game started on Tuesday but was finished Wednesday afternoon with MV leading, 62-60, with 13.7 seconds left.
The game was halted when smoke began to fill the arena, according to B-C athletic director Louis Clyburn.
“A motor underneath the bleachers for whatever reason started overheating,” Clyburn told The State. “Didn’t catch fire, but once some rubber gears started melting there was a really, bad smell. Safety first.”
The crowd was evacuated once the smoke was apparent. It was decided that game would be finished Wednesday, so Midland Valley had to make the 70-minute ride back to B-C.
Once the game resumed, Midland Valley hit a pair of free throws and B-C missed a shot. Then, the Mustangs hit two more free throws to seal the game.
It was the third game of the season between MV and B-C, who both play in Region 4-4A. B-C won the first game, but the Mustangs won the final two.
Now, MV gets to play another region team in Gray. The War Eagles won both meetings this season, 84-36 and 78-48.
Tuesday’s SCHSL Playoff Scores
Boys
Class 5A Division I
(6) Clover 57, (11) Blythewood 48: The Blue Eagles outscored the Bengals 11-4 over the final two minutes in the first-round win.
(7) Mauldin 71, (10) Spring Valley 51: Mauldin knocked off the Vikings and earned a matchup at Dutch Fork on Saturday.
(9) Summerville 60, (8) Lexington 52: The Green Wave used a 9-0 run in the fourth quarter to open up a 54-45 lead in the win over the Wildcats.
Class 4A
(5) South Pointe 66, (12) Dreher 44: The Stallions beat the Blue Devils for the third time this season and advanced in the playoffs. Christian Dupree led SP with 20 points and Tre Raymon had 19.
(6) Greer 50, (11) AC Flora 38: Jyssiah Foster scored 13 points in Greer’s win over the Falcons.
(1) Gray Collegiate 82, (16) South Florence 39: Luis Echevarria scored 14 points, Levi Ball had 12 and Rickey Littlejohn had 11 in the top-seeded War Eagles’ victory.
(5) Crestwood 66, (12) Lower Richland 51: The Diamond Hornets’ season ended on the road at Crestwood.
(10) Fountain Inn 56, (7) Camden 42: Aedan McDowell scored 16 points and the Fury used a 2-3 zone to dominate the second half in the playoff win at Camden.
Camden, which led 26-25 at halftime, managed just 16 points in the second half and couldn’t hit the outside shots against Fountain Inn’s zone defense. Auston Williams added 13 points and EJ Lundy had 12 for FI.
Eighth grader Jayden Green led Camden with 11 points.
Class A
CA Johnson 90, Whitmire 16: Tony Odom scored 20 points as the Green Hornets rolled in their playoff opener.
Milton McCray added 16 and Aissaac Germany added 13. CA Johnson will host McCormick on Saturday.
Girls
Class 5A Division II
(12) Lugoff-Elgin 50, (5) St. James 44: Kadie Hall scored 18 points and Jordan Samuel had 14 as the Demons won their first playoff game in more than 20 years.
L-E will head to Chapin on Saturday.
(6) Irmo 39, (11) Myrtle Beach 29: The Yellow Jackets turned in one of their best defensive performances of the season in the first-round win. Irmo heads to Berkeley on Saturday.
(7) Westwood 66, (10) Conway 23: The Redhawks dominated the Tigers to advance to the second round. Westwood goes to North Myrtle Beach on Saturday.
Class 3A
(9) Waccamaw 64, (8) Newberry 47: Waccamaw hit 20-of-28 from the free-throw line in the win over the Bulldogs.
(4) Aynor 47, (13) Swansea 27: The Tigers’ season ended at Aynor.
(2) Keenan 62, (15) Marlboro County 53: Class 3A Player of the Year Taelor Lee-Suton scored 23 points in the Raiders’ win over the Bulldogs. Aeronna Caughman added 17 points and Kristin Brown had 12 for Keenan.
Keenan hosts Georgetown on Saturday.
Class 2A
Batesburg-Leesville 41, Columbia 37: The Panthers rallied from a five-point fourth quarter deficit to win a playoff game on the road. B-L travels to Blacksburg on Saturday.
Ninety-Six 60, Eau Claire 34: After a run to the title game last year, the Shamrocks lost in the first round this season.
Saluda 54, Central 11: The region-champion Tigers moved on in the second round and will host Landrum on Saturday.
SCISA Regular Season
Girls
Ben Lippen 53, Hammond 29: Laney McEntire scored 16 points and Ariel Summons had 15 as the Falcons wrapped up the SCISA 1-4A championship on the final day of the regular season.
It is believed to be the program’s first region title. Ben Lippen likely will be a No. 2 seed in the 4A playoffs when the brackets are released on Wednesday.
Boys
Ben Lippen 57: Hammond 48: Braysen Stockman scored 17 points and Marcus Moore added 12 in the final game of the regular season.
This story was originally published February 17, 2026 at 9:55 PM.
