Ridge View begins its 4A title chase on the right note

Blazers dominate Hilton Head Island to coast into the second round of the state tournament

COLUMBIA, SOUTH CAROLINA – Starting the playoffs on the right note is crucial for teams wanting to make a deep run.

Ridge View did just that Wednesday night when the team scored a season-high in points during its 77-47 victory over Hilton Head Island to advance to the second round of the South Carolina 4A state tournament.

The Blazers’ 77 points marks a new high for the team, topping the previous mark of 76 against Lugoff-Elgin on Jan 6. Ridge View has now scored at least 70 points in five games this season.

Freshman Korie Corbett scored 24 to lead Ridge View in scoring. He did the majority of his work in the second half, scoring 19 points and making 5-6 free throws.

Ridge View's Korie Corbett (12) worked hard on both ends of the court, here playing tough defense against Hilton Head Island's Luke Danzell, while scoring a game-high 24 points on the offensive end / Photo by Jacob Phillips

It was a physical game from start to finish, and Ridge View took advantage of its size to over power the Seahawks. The Blazers scored many of their points inside the paint.

Ridge View started the game on a 6-0 scoring run and quickly showed their gameplan: Force the ball inside.

“(Coach Staley) said he wanted to get it in the post today, so that's what we did,” Corbett said.

Ridge View rarely took jumpers in the first half, making just one three-pointer.

The Blazers took a 10 point lead in the middle of the second quarter. But as halftime got closer, Hilton Head got more aggressive.

The Seahawks drew fouls and cut the Ridge View lead from 12 to eight before the midway point.

Junior Jayden Pretty scored 10 points in the half for the Blazers. He finished with 13 points.

In the second half the Blazers took off.

The team forced Seahawk turnovers and got out in transition to score easy fast break points. This allowed them to build a 17 point lead at the end of the third quarter, and it didn’t stop in the fourth.

“We want to get stops and get in transition,” Blazer head coach Joshua Staley said. “Every time we have an opportunity to do that, we want to take advantage of it.”

Ridge View efficiently moved the ball up the court, rarley making any mistakes that disrupted a fast break.

In the middle of the fourth quarter, Ridge View zipped the ball up the court for a Corbett slam. It took the Blazers three passes to score, and the ball never hit the floor.

“That's how we want to play.” Staley said. “Selfless basketball, play through each other. When you're a skilled, you don't have to take bad shots.”

Senior guard Jocorey Walters led the Seahawks in scoring with 19 points. His game ended early with 1:51 left after fouling out.

The loss marks the end of tough season for Hilton Head Island. The Seahwaks finish the season on a seven game losong streak and drop to (5-18) overall.

Jocorey Walters led Hilton Head Island, scoring 19 points in his team's season-ending loss / Photo by Jacob Phillips

The win gives Staley his first playoff win as head coach of the Blazers and propels his team into the next round.

“It feels good.” Staley said. “That's the expectation around here is to succeed. They put it on my door, so it's not pressure. It's just expectation.”

The Blazers travel to Wilson High school Friday with tip-off scheduled for 7 p.m.

“Crazy it's a quick turnaround,” Staley said. “ We’re going to work on some things and see what happens.”

Photo by Jacob Phillips

Photo by Jacob Phillips

Photo by Jacob Phillips

Photo by Jacob Phillips

Photo by Jacob Phillips

Photo by Jacob Phillips

Photo by Jacob Phillips