Belgreen boys finish runner-up in Class 2A Area 14 tournament

The Belgreen High School varsity boys’ basketball team suffered a six-point defeat to top-seeded Covenant Christian School in the Class 2A Area 14 tournament championship game Saturday night, falling to the Eagles by a final score of 53-47. The loss forces the Bulldogs to travel for its upcoming sub-region contest.

Once Covenant took the lead over Belgreen, the hosts insisted on keeping it. Belgreen trailed at the end of every period, but always remained within striking distance. Ultimately, however, the Bulldogs were unable to overcome the deficit before the final buzzer sounded.

BHS was led by senior Jonathan Mendoza and junior Jake Dill in the defeat. Mendoza and Dill, who were named to the area all-tournament team, finished with 19 and 13 points, respectively.

Before reaching the championship contest against Covenant, Belgreen first dispatched rival Tharptown High School in the tourney semifinal round. That game, played on Thursday, February 5, was won convincingly by the Bulldogs 59-22.

Belgreen tripled Tharptown’s tally in the opening period, outscoring the Wildcats 18-6. From there the Bulldogs piled it on and played effective defense; the most Tharptown scored in a given period was nine points.

Evin Lawson was THS’ top scorer in the defeat which ended the Wildcats’ season. Belgreen was led by Dill, who dropped 22 points, and senior Braycen Johnson, who hit double figures with 12 points.

Up next for Belgreen is a road sub-region matchup against the champion of Area 15. That area championship game is set to be played between Decatur Heritage and Tanner on Tuesday, February 10. Boys’ sub-region games are tentatively set for Saturday, February 14.