STERLING CITY - The Grady boys basketball team strung together three strong games to finish second at the Sterling City Tournament on Dec. 30 and 31.
The Wildcats opened the tournament with a great performance against the Sterling City junior varsity. Grady had a 37-8 lead at halftime and cruised to a 63-22 win.
Logan Aaron led all scorers with 11 points while Chapman Sims added nine points and Cobe Cortez posted a season high nine points.
Blaise Warren had his best game of the season with six points while Austin Aaron, Kody Cates, and Cooper Wallin added six points each.
Colt Carson tossed in four points and Quint Harrell and Hunter McAnally rounded out the books with three points apiece.
Later that night, Grady would take on tournament host Sterling City.
Grady would take a slim 19-16 lead at halftime and hold off a good Eagles team late for a 49-47 win.
A. Aaron finished with a season high 16 points followed by L. Aaron with 12 and Harrell with 10. Sims and Wallin wrapped up the scoring stats with seven and four points respectively.
The two wins earned the Wildcats a spot in the championship game against the Garden City Bearkats.
Garden City looked good early slipping out to a 13-9 lead and increasing its advantage to 18-11 by halftime.
Grady tried to make a run in the third quarter but the Bearkats answered with a flurry of buckets and held on for a 39-32 win.
Grady was led by L. Aaron with 18 points. A. Aaron scored four points and Cates chipped in with three points. Harrell, Sims, and Carson tallies two points each.
“This was our last varsity tournament for the season and it was another great tournament for our kids,” said Grady coach Chris Short. “We did not play as well as I would have liked to in the Championship game against Garden City, but kids competed hard, just missed several easy scoring opportunities throughout the game. Garden City has a very solid ball club.”
Logan Aaron and Austin were named to the All-Tournament Team.
Grady will next play at Forsan on Friday at 5 p.m. The jv Wildcats are scheduled to begin at 4 p.m.