Hawthorne was in a back-and-forth battle with host Fort White in the District 6-1A semifinal when C.J. Ingram took over the game.
Ingram made 10 of 15 free throws in the fourth quarter and scored a game-high 30 points and second-seed Hawthorne turned up the defense in the final period to pull away from No. 3 seed Fort White, 69-57, on Thursday.
The Hornets (15-4) have won 11 games in a row and play for the district title on Saturday night against top-seed Newberry. The Panthers (15-7) cruised past fourth-seeded Union County (Lake Butler), 69-39, in the first semifinal.
Hawthorne had to deal with a hostile environment in what was a road game in Fort White’s gym.
Hawthorne coach Greg Bowie says his team is ready for those challenges though.
“It was a great atmosphere, but we are kind of used to playing in an atmosphere like this,” Bowie said. “But being on the road it was a little different in a gym that’s bigger than ours.”
The two teams mostly went back and forth in the first three periods. The Indians (16-6) edged ahead of the Hornets, 13-12, after the first eight minutes.
The second quarter was more of the same. Ingram had six points and senior Caleb Rollerson scored six of his nine points as Hawthorne took a 32-29 lead into halftime.
Ingram then caught fire in the third quarter with nine points as Hawthorne extended their lead over Fort While to as many as nine points before settling for a 50-45 advantage heading to the final period.
In the fourth quarter, Hawthorne’s defense turned it up a notch and wore out Fort White and their leading scorer sophomore Jayden Jackson.
“They (Fort White) came out with intensity in the first quarter,” Bowie said. “But we were able to get big enough of a lead and after the half, we were rotating guys on #1(Jackson), who is a heck of a player, but we were just trying to wear him down.”
The fourth quarter also saw Ingram marching to the free throw line.
We wanted to be physical,” Bowie said. “His (Ingram’s) shots weren’t falling early but we told him to go to the basket. He’s just a heck of a player.”
Junior Decarion Debose added 13 points and sophomore Darion Bowie was also in double figures for Hawthorne with 11.
Junior Tareri Moe led Fort White with 22 points.
In the opening semifinal, Newberry used a 46-6 run through the first and second quarters for a 51-11 halftime lead over Union County and a running clock in the second half. The Panthers were forcing turnover after turnover against the Tigers to set up easy buckets.
“We have been working on the press a lot lately, and it definitely worked to our advantage tonight,” Newberry coach Patrick Green said.
Hawthorne and Newberry played two close games last season, with the Hornets winning at the buzzer 48-47 in the district title game and then edging out the Panthers, 43-41, to advance to the Final Four in Lakeland.
BOYS BASKETBALL – THURSDAY, FEB. 8 RESULTS
1A-District 5 Semifinals
3 Madison County 49, 2 Branford 46
1A-District 6 Semifinals
1 Newberry 69, 4 Union County 39
2 Hawthorne 69, 3 Fort White 57
1A-District 7 Semifinals
1 Williston 89, 4 Dixie County 34
2 Chiefland 61, 3 Trenton 28
2A-District 4 Semifinals
1 Oak Hall, 64, 4 Meadowbrook Academy 24
3 Redeemer Christian winner 59, 2 St. Francis Catholic 47
3A-District 2 Semifinals
1 P.K. Yonge 66, 4 Bradford (Starke) 43
4A-District 5 Semifinals
1 Palatka 55, 4 Eastside 48
3 North Marion 61, 2 Santa Fe (Alachua) 59
5A-District 2 Semifinals
2 Columbia (Lake City) 65, 3 Clay 34
6A-District 2 Semifinals
1 Buchholz 59, 4 Mosley 47
3 Gainesville 47, 2 Lincoln (Tallahassee) 41
SATURDAY, FEB. 10
1A-District 6 Championship (at Fort White)
2 Hawthorne vs. 1 Newberry, 7:30 p.m.
1A-District 7 Championship
2 Chiefland vs. 1 Williston, TBA
2A-District 4 Championship
3 Redeemer Christian (Ocala) vs. 1 Oak Hall, TBA
3A-District 2 Championship
2 Trinity Catholic (Ocala) vs. 1 P.K. Yonge TBA
5A-District 2 Championship
2 Columbia (Lake City) vs. 1 Rickards (Tallahassee), TBA
6A-District 2 Championship
3 Gainesville at 1 Buchholz, TBA