By Ryan Arena

L’Observateur

It hasn’t been too often that Class C powerhouse Reserve Christian has been seriously challenged in the state playoffs in recent years.

But on Friday night, there was Sicily Island, ready to take the fight to the Eagles.

But despite a packed home gym, a huge night from its leading scorer, and a halftime lead, the Tigers couldn’t deny Reserve Christian its fifth straight trip to the Boys Top 28 Basketball Tournament in Lafayette. The Eagles made it official with a challenging 70-63 quarterfinal victory on the road.

“We knew these guys were good,” said Reserve coach Timmy Byrd. “They were the only team all season to beat Vidalia, and that’s the No. 1 seed in 3A.

“I think this was a wake up call to our guys that nothing is going to come easy. This could have easily been the state title game.”

Cedric Jenkins led Reserve (42-7) with 17. Ricardo Gathers scored 16. Chris Roussell chipped in 15, and Louis Dabney added 10.

But the night’s leading scorer was Sicily Island’s Karlos Gary, who scored 33 points and left a notable impression on Byrd.

“He could easily be the best player in the state,” Byrd said. “We tried everything. We gave him nothing easy. But this is a kid that can shoot from 30 feet away, and he just rises over you. He was virtually unstoppable.”

Buoyed on by a standing room only home crowd, the Tigers (26-9) led 33-32 at halftime, threatening to end Reserve’s state championship streak at four.

The Eagles took the lead in the third quarter and created some distance, outscoring Sicily Island 22-12 in the period.

But the Tigers refused to go away. With two minutes left, RCS led merely by three.

“We took some ill-advised shots, ones we didn’t need to take at all with a lead,” said Byrd.

With the lead at three, Reserve pulled the ball out and worked the clock. In doing so, it got the Tigers out of the zone defense they’d employed most of the night. RCS drew fouls, and converted their opportunities at the line to preserve the win.

Byrd noted his team’s depth as a key factor in the second half.

“They really have play only six guys,” Byrd said. “We played 10 throughout. I think we were able to wear them out with our numbers.”

That too was the plan to limit Gary, particularly down the stretch.

“Louis Dabney did a real good job on him,” Byrd said. “Cedric took him at then end. And at times we went small and put Franklin Francois on him. So we used three guys on him, and towards the end I think he started to wear down.”

Devon Dunbar scored 17 for Sicily Island. Alex Jones added 10.