Freshman forward leads Faith Family past powerhouse Houston Yates in 4A state semis
It was Houston Yates, appearing at the state tournament for a seventh time, against newcomer Oak Cliff Faith Family Academy during the Class 4A state semifinals on Friday at the Alamodome.
The newcomer prevailed.
Freshman forward Trae Clayton scored 23 of his game-high 35 in the second half and the Eagles took down Yates, 80-74 to advance to their first state title game.
The Eagles (35-6), ranked No. 2 in 4A, will face Liberty Hill at 7 p.m. on Saturday. Liberty Hill beat Decatur on Friday with a buzzer beater.
Faith Family shot 18 of 31 in the second half (58 percent) while Yates (27-5), ranked No. 4 in 4A, shot 36.7 percent, including 5 of 18 in the final period.
Yates tied the game at 58 early in the fourth with a Daryl Brown jumper and took the lead on a JoQuarius Valrie layup in the paint on its next possession.
The Eagles led 62-60 on a 3-point play from Langston Murphy-Brown, but Yates went back up after a 3-pointer from Kayden Rose with 5:27 to play. Two free throws from Rubin Jones put Yates up 66-64 with 3:47 left, but Faith Family scored the next nine points to pull away.
Clayton shot 16 of 21 from the field and grabbed 14 rebounds. Rakeim Gray and Jordan Walsh chipped in 12 and 11 points. Valrie led Yates with 27 points on 11 of 20 shooting. Rose added 18 points and Jones and Antwon Norman scored 12 apiece.
Faith Family outrebounded Yates 40-27 and won despite committing 27 turnovers. There were 17 lead changes.
