Kent SmithCLEVELAND, Tenn. - Of the wins in Bradley Central basketball coach Kent Smith's career, Tuesday will go down as neither the prettiest nor the most dominating. As a matter of fact, there are no superlatives to describe the Bears' 71-42 victory over McMinn County.
But as the final seconds wound down, the Bradley student section started a two-word chant as to why it was so special to Smith: "Four hundred."
The Bears put three players in double figures, led by Hunter Chastain with 17 points, and forced McMinn into 29 turnovers on their way to the District 5-AAA victory and the 400th win of Smith's 16-year coaching career.
The Bears improved to 7-2 in the district and remain in contention for the top seed in the 5-AAA tournament. Ooltewah and Bradley each has two league two losses, but the Owls can claim the regular-season crown by winning out, after the Bears were docked a district win for using an ineligible player recently.
"That was the biggest thing for us tonight," Smith said. "We just needed to get a win and stay in the district race."
The hosts took a double-digit advantage by the 2:40 mark of the second quarter, when a layup by Miles Morgan made it 24-13. Bradley's full-court pressure defense led to some sloppy ball-handling by the Cherokees, but the Bears committed 13 turnovers themselves and weren't at their best.
"You have to give our guys credit," Smith said. "Sometimes good teams have to win on what isn't their best night, and although we did some things well at times, we weren't sharp."
Bryce Copeland and Justin Houston scored 15 and 13 points for Bradley (18-5). Cedric Nevins led the Cherokees (13-10, 5-6) with nine points despite not entering the game until midway through the third quarter. Ty Jones was right behind him with eight.
Smith put things in perspective afterward.
"Every game I've coached, I don't care who it's against, I get ready for it and prepare the hardest," he said. "Every win is a game in itself. I have a lot of respect for McMinn County and Coach [Keith] Elliott. They always play us hard, and my only concern was getting a win and staying in the district race.
"The wins take care of themselves. You have to have great players to win at any level, but I value the relationships I've developed with my players over these 16 years. I still talk to a lot of them to this day, and that's what I value the most."