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AHOSKIE – When the going gets tough, the tough gets going.

Shimere Garris took that wise old adage to heart here last night (Friday).

The junior guard scored 11 of his game-high 33 points in the fourth quarter to help Hertford County’s varsity boys reach the finals of the Roanoke-Chowan News-Herald Holiday Classis with a hard fought 58-52 win over Roanoke Rapids.

The Bears will face conference rival Northeastern High School in Monday’s championship game at the HCHS gym. Tipoff is set for approximately 7:30 p.m.

But to get there, Hertford County had to dig deep to find ways to defeat a gritty Roanoke Rapids squad.

The Yellow Jackets, who led 24-23 at halftime, battled the Bears hard in the third period where the lead exchanged hands on four occasions and neither team led by more than four points.

Little did anyone in the stands know at the time, but a buzzer-beating three-pointer by Garris to end the third quarter gave the Bears a lead (42-41) they never would relinquish.

Still clinging to a one-point lead (44-43) early in the fourth quarter, Garris reeled off seven straight points in less than two minutes, including a turning/twisting basket in the lane on which he was fouled and stepped to the line to complete the three-point play, handing HCHS its largest lead of the game (51-43) with 4:18 left.

After a Roanoke Rapids timeout, the Yellow Jackets switched to a 1-3-1 zone defense, which seemed to confuse the Bears. Meanwhile, the visitors reeled off six unanswered points, led by a basket each from Christian Price and Quentez Richardson, and trimmed their deficit to 51-49.

Garris finally found a dead spot in the zone defense and buried a huge three-pointer from the left wing for a 54-49 lead with 2:13 remaining.

Khamauri Wood answered with a three-pointer for the Yellow Jackets, making it a 54-52 game with 1:03 left on the clock. But that would be the last points for Roanoke Rapids as Garris and Remelo Robertson closed the game with HCHS baskets to account for the final score.

Roanoke Rapids led early, 6-2, before the Bears got their offense untracked. Back to back baskets from Rimiez Williams, a hoop by Josiah Powell and three-pointers from Garris and Rucker Nixon helped the Bears take a 17-14 lead by the end of the first quarter.

A basket and free throw each by Garris and Williams allowed the Bears to build their largest lead of the first half at 23-18 with 2:20 left in the second quarter. But the Bears failed to add another point while Price, Richardson, and Bobby Hawkins each had a basket down the stretch that afforded the Yellow Jackets its 24-23 halftime lead.

Hertford County (58)

Shimere Garris (33), Rimiez Williams (13), Josiah Powell (4), Rucker Nixon (3), Remelo Robertson (3), Joshua Harrell (2).

Roanoke Rapids (52)

Quentez Richardson (19), Christian Price (12), Bryce Spillane (10), Khamauri Wood (7), Bobby Hawkins (4).