Mike Ridaught
On Tuesday afternoon, Bronson High School will host an 8-team boys basketball holiday tournament.
Branford (6-3) will play Newberry in the first game of the tournament at 3:30 p.m., followed by Bell and Tavares at 5 p.m.
The Panthers (7-1) are ranked No. 1 in Class 1A and are considered one of the favorites to win the 3-day tournament, which will conclude on Thursday.
Bell is looking to snap a 5-game losing streak. After starting the season with a .500 record, the Bulldogs are now 3-8 on the year.
Scoring has been one of the biggest issues during the current losing streak as Bell has averaged just 37.4 points per game during the slump and they are allowing 61.8 points per game during that 5-game stretch.
Despite the discrepancy in points, two of the Bulldogs’ games have been close. Bell lost by only five, 61-56, to Lafayette (Mayo) and by only two points, 42-40, at Trenton.
It’s certainly a winnable game on Tuesday. Their opponent, Tavares, will enter the game with a winless record at 0-9. They’ve scored 32 or less points six times this year.
Tonight at 6:30 p.m., the Chiefland will play Hilliard in game three.
The Indians are 3-3 this season with wins against Newberry, Bell, and Dixie County and losses to Oak Hall, Fort White, and Union County (Lake Butler). The losses to Oak Hall and Union County were by a combined eight points.
Their opponent tonight, the Flashes, are currently 7-3 and ranked eighth in the state in Class 1A.
The final game on day one will be at 8 p.m. as Bronson will play Keystone Heights.
The host Eagles are 4-6 this season but narrowly lost to Class 2A St. Francis Catholic, falling 34-32, which snapped a four-game losing streak.
Two players are averaging double figures for Bronson, led by freshman Justice Phillips with 12.5 points and senior Dylan Homan at 12.4 points per game.
Brent Brenneman is in his first season as head coach at Bronson.
“It might take some time for the guys to adjust to the way I coach and the standard I will hold them to,” Brenneman said before the season. “Additionally, we only have three varsity returners, so most of our rotation will need to adjust quickly to playing at the varsity level for us to be successful.”
Tuesday, Dec. 27
Newberry vs. Branford, 3:30 p.m.
Bell vs. Tavares, 5 p.m.
Chiefland vs. Hilliard, 6:30 p.m.
Bronson vs. Keystone Heights, 8 p.m.
Wednesday, Dec. 28
Newberry/Branford loser vs. Bell/Tavares loser, 3:30 p.m.
Chiefland/Hilliard loser vs. Bronson/Keystone Heights loser 5 p.m.
Newberry/Branford winner vs. Bell/Tavares winner, 6:30 p.m.
Chiefland/Hilliard winner vs. Bronson/Keystone Heights winner, 8 p.m.
Thursday, Dec. 29
7th-place game, 3:30 p.m.
5th-place game, 5 p.m.
3rd-place game, 6:30 p.m.
Championship game, 8 p.m.