photo by: Photo by Bill Ferguson

Colson Wichterman’s (12) steal and score help spark Cameron’s third quarter comeback in their regional victory over Tyler Consolidated.

SISTERSVILLE — Two of the best players in the state faced off on the hardwood Wednesday as Trevor Beresford and the Cameron Dragons secured their spot in the state tournament with a 49-38 win over Caleb Strode and the Tyler Consolidated Knights in a Region 1 Co-Final.

“We knew that matchup was coming and they battled hard,” said Tyler coach Steve Nutter. “Those guys are maybe the two premiere big guys in single-A and they were battling against each other (Wednesday). That’s always fun to see.”

Beresford and the Dragons turned around a forgettable first half to put out one of the best defensive performances of the year in the second half to punch their return ticket to Charleston next week.

“I’m just so proud of them, because the defensive effort they gave won the ballgame for us,” said Cameron coach Tom Hart. “The boys just wanted it. They wanted to make that trip back down (to Charleston).”

After trailing 27-19 at halftime, Cameron held Tyler to just two points in the third quarter, while they scored 14 for themselves and took a 33-29 lead heading into the fourth. Between the third and fourth periods, there was a stretch where the Dragons scored 15 consecutive points.

“We wanted to put a little bit more pressure on them,” Hart explained. “We started putting more pressure on their top two guards and we also started limiting them to only one shot.

“We started attcking the basket on offense. We were a little hesitant in the first half but we got a couple of shots (in the second half) and it kind of snowballed from there. But it was all triggered by our defense.”

The Knights found success in the first half by double- and triple-teaming the 6-8 Beresford, forcing Cameron’s other players to handle the scoring. When some shots finally started for fall for Cameron in the second, Tyler had to space out a bit more on defense and their gameplan stopped working as well.

“We knew that if their guards made shots, we’d be in trouble,” Nutter said. “With (Lance) Hartley and Beresford back there in the middle, we knew that we weren’t just going to be able to space them. We tried to pack it in, play a 2-3 and be aggressive with Beresford and we did a really good job in the first half. In the second half, when their defense picked up, they were able to get out in the open floor and space us a little bit in transition.”

Beresford scored 11 of his game-high 19 points after halftime. On the other end, Beresford held Strode, who averages 23 points per game, to just 11.

“He’s a tremendous ball player,” Hart said of Strode. “Steve does an amazing job with Tyler Consolidated and I wish we could see them down in Charleston. He’s got a great program and he does a great job with those guys.”

Haygen Baker led Tyler with 12 points, followed by Strode’s 11. Connor Bailey contributed nine.

Cole Burket followed Beresford with 11 points while Colson Wichterman scored eight, all in the second half.

The Dragons will be making just their second state tournament appearance in school history after making it for the first time last season.