Cloudland was unable to overcome a slow start on Thursday night.
The No. 4 ‘Landers dropped a 61-28 decision to No. 4 University High in the District 1-A opening round on Warrior Hill. Cloudland’s season comes to a close, while University High advances to take on No. 1 Hampton on Saturday afternoon in a semifinal matchup.
University High opened the game on a 17-3 before Gavyn Shell scored four points. Grayson Cole added a late bucket, but the Bucs took a 23-9 lead into the second quarter.
The second quarter was a defensive battle as each team was limited to a free throw until Bryce Birchfield knocked down a jumper with just over three minutes left in the half. The teams traded shots to end the half as UH maintained a 28-17 lead at the half.
Brayden Hughes opened the scoring for Cloudland in the third quarter, but the ‘Landers were unable to trim into the UH lead. Cloudland kept battling in the fourth, but UH used a 23-1 run to take control.
Shell and Hughes led Cloudland with six points apiece. Devin Balado and Uriah Jarrett had five points apiece, while Birchfield had four points.
Janson West led UH with 17 points.
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