Goodpasture and MBA Win State Crowns in DII

The crowds may have been limited but the action was full force as the Division II Tennessee state playoffs commenced this weekend at the Eblen Center on the campus of Tennessee Tech University.

 

 

 

 

Two state champions were crowned as Goodpasture defeated CPA 60-50 to capture the Division II/Class A title, while MBA defeated Brentwood Academy 72-51 to bring home the gold ball in the Class AA classification.

 

Two Mr. Basketball winners were announced as Kameron Jones (ECS) was honored in the Class A division and B.J. Edwards (Knoxville Catholic) brought home the hardware in Class AA.

 

Here are five players from the event who stood out in our opinion.

 

Kameron Jones (ECS)

6'3 Sr. SG

The Mr. Basketball winner and Marquette signee was spectacular in his short state tourney run dropping 27 points in the first round loss to eventual champions Goodpasture. Jones is a dynamic shooter who will have no issues acclimating to the speed and style of the next level.

 

Tyler Byrd (Tipton-Rosemark)

6'4 Jr. SG

The junior guard was flat our amazing in his state tournament debut dropping 36 markers and snatching 12 caroms in a first round loss to CPA. Byrd transferred over to TRM when the Memphis metro schools opted out of action this season and made the most of his season. Look for a big summer from this athletic emerging guard.

 

Braden Zapp (CPA)

5'11 Sr. PG

Zapp was ultra consistent helping lead the Lions to the state title game with a 21 point effort in the semi-final win over Tipton-Rosemark. The Trevecca Nazarene signee was the leading scorer in the title game loss to Goodpasture with 18. He was named to the All-Tournament team.

 

P.J. Smith (Goodpasture)

6'2 Sr. PG

Gigantic senior year capped off with stacks of hardware, including the state championship gold ball and being named the MVP of the tournament. Smith, a Lee University signee, was dynamic in his two game stint at state dropping 25 in the opening game win over ECS and culminating an average shooting night with 10 markers and 11 dimes in the title game victory.

 

Will Montana (MBA)

6'5 Sr. SG

One of the top remaining unsigned seniors in our state, Montana was amazing at state, capturing the MVP for his efforts and helping MBA bring home the gold ball with a dominating 72-51 victory over Brentwood Academy in the title game. Montana was consistent in the semi-final win over Knoxville Catholic scoring 12 and exploded with 25 in the title game victory. He shot 10-12 from the field including several rim shattering drives that kept momentum in his squads favor.