They face MRH in district playoffs on Feb. 22

 
By Steve Bowman
Editor, The Brentwood Spirit
Email: bowmansj@sbcglobal.net

The Brentwood High School boys basketball team completed the regular season undefeated in the conference with a six-point victory over Hancock on Feb. 17. The Eagles had already clinched winning the title outright the night before, against Valley Park, but they’d probably agree that 8-0 looks a lot better than 7-1.

It’s the fourth year in a row the BHS boys basketball program has won the South Central. They haven’t done that since at least as long ago as the 1970s.

The Hancock game was senior night and coaches honored Nigel Bracey, Charles “Butters” Jones and Seth Winkleman. Bracey contributed nine rebounds, three blocks and two steals. Jones had 20 points, 16 rebounds and four steals. Winkleman chipped in six rebounds, two steals and two blocks.

District playoffs this week
Can conference success translate into district wins? The Eagles will find out in the district tournament this week at John Burroughs High School. They will play Maplewood-Richmond Heights at 8 p.m. Feb. 22 for a chance to reach the semifinals. The Eagles have not beaten the Blue Devils since the district semifinals in February 2010, a losing streak of six games. MRH triumphed with a three-pointer at the buzzer on Jan. 21.

Sappington, Butters among leaders
Two Eagles are among the leaders in three statistical categories in the St. Louis area. Skylar Sappington 9.35 assists per game is ranked No. 2 and his 3.04 steals per game is No. 8. Charles Jones’s 19.3 points per game is ranked 23rd.

Final South Central AA Conference Standings
1. Brentwood, 8-0
2. Valley Park, 6-2
3. Hancock, 4-4
4. Bayless, 2-6
5. Crossroads, 0-8

Seeding for Class 3 District 4 tournament
1. Whitfield, 18-4
2. John Burroughs, 11-11, beat BHS by 26
3. Valley Park, 14-4, lost to BHS by 16 and by 1
4. Brentwood, 9-12
5. Maplewood-Richmond Heights, 3-16, beat BHS by 3
6. Principia, 5-17, beat BHS by 13
7. Cleveland NJROTC, 8-12, beat BHS by 4
8. John F. Kennedy, 5-19, beat BHS by 6

Feb. 17: beat Hancock 62-56
Jlkjlkj. Key stat: Both teams shot poorly and committed a lot of turnovers but the Eagles grabbed 20 more rebounds, with Charles Jones, Cade Jones and Nigel Bracey combining for 38. BHS leaders: Charles Jones, 20 points (7-21 FG), 16 rebounds; Cade Jones, 12 points (6-18 FG); 13 rebounds; Skylar Sappington, 11 points (3-11 FG), 10 assists; Bracey, 9 rebounds, 3 blocks. Hancock leaders: Jeremiah Turner, 15 points (5-13 FG); Edric Hodges, 15 rebounds.

Brentwood’s results — 11-12 as of Feb. 21
Nov. 30: beat Crossroads 63-23 in Valley Park Invitational
Dec. 3: lost to Kennedy 53-47 in Valley Park Invitational
Dec. 4: beat Principia 54-44 for 3rd place in Valley Park Invitational
Dec. 7: beat McKinley 69-26
Dec. 15: lost to Orchard Farm 73-66
Dec. 23: lost to Francis Howell 77-40 at MICDS Holiday Invitational
Dec. 26: lost to MICDS 78-61 at MICDS Holiday Invitational
Dec. 28: lost to Clayton 71-46 at MICDS Holiday Invitational
Jan. 5: lost to Lift for Life 66-53
Jan. 12: beat Crossroads 54-30
Jan. 14: lost to St. Pius X-Festus 58-43
Jan. 21: lost to MRH 51-48
Jan. 26: beat Bayless 81-60
Jan. 27: lost to Trinity 66-58
Jan. 29: beat Valley Park 66-50
Feb. 2: beat Crossroads 60-28
Feb. 4: lost to Principia 52-39
Feb. 9: beat Hancock 68-60
Feb. 10: lost to John Burroughs 66-40
Feb. 11: lost to Cleveland NJROTC 45-41
Feb. 12: beat Bayless 69-55
Feb. 16: beat Valley Park 49-48
Feb. 17: beat Hancock 62-56
District playoffs at John Burroughs:
Feb. 22, 8 p.m.: BHS vs. MRH
Feb. 24: 8 p.m. BHS or MRH vs. Whitfield or JFK
Feb. 26, 5 p.m.: district championship