SANTEE -- Most teams prefer to have a good finisher when a game is on the line.

Bamberg-Ehrhardt had two Wednesday night against C.E. Murray. The tandem of Jahkiry Johnson and Eric Buckner gave the Red Raiders the boost they needed in the fourth quarter to pick up a 56-45 win at Lake Marion High.

Defense and jitters were featured in the first quarter. B-E ended the quarter with seven turnovers, but the War Eagles had trouble scoring inside because of the 6-foot-8 Buckner's presence.

"He kind of kept us in there," B-E head coach Kevin Crosby said. "He's still got to become a force down there as far as making sure (he) controls what happens down there. He did that early."

The Red Raiders headed into the second quarter with an 8-6 lead, but C.E. Murray came out and made sure that they didn't hold that lead. A dunk by Tevin Wallace sparked a 7-0 run for the War Eagles giving them a 13-8 lead with 3:34 remaining in the half. The Red Raiders answered with a 5-0 run of their own to tie the game 13-13 with just over two minutes left before halftime. Both teams would trade baskets with time expiring, but it was C.E. Murray that went into the half with the 19-17 advantage.

Bamberg-Ehrhardt opened up their offense with 4:18 left in the third quarter. Buckner knocked down his first free throw, but he missed the second. Chris Presley quickly grabbed the offensive rebound and scored to tie the game. Those three points ignited a 10-2 run giving the Red Raiders a 29-25 lead with about two minutes left in the quarter.

"We always talk about hitting a run when we come out of halftime," Crosby said. "We always say that we've got to hit a run, we've got to hit a spurt, and we've got to make sure we take care of doing some things heading into the fourth."

C.E, Murray (17-10) crept back into it with two crucial baskets with a minute left -- including a long 3-pointer by Ferrell Walker -- to make it 31-30 at the end of the three.

The Red Raiders pulled away in the fourth quarter with a 10-2 run that ended with just under three minutes left to play. Johnson scored six of his 13 fourth-quarter points during that run to extend B-E's lead to six. Meanwhile, the War Eagles failed to come up with a way to get around Buckner, which spelled the end of their title dream.

"Our offense is predicated on getting to the basket and getting some easy baskets," C.E. Murray head coach Jimmy Miller said. "With a center who's 6-7 or 6-8, we weren't able to get to the basket and get some easy baskets. We just couldn't find a way to score."

In the end, it was an alley-oop from Johnson to Buckner that made it 48-40 and capped the game for the Red Raiders.

"I just wish he would've stepped up in the first or second quarter instead of waiting until the second half," Crosby said. "I commend him for stepping up at the end, but he's got to look at it and say 'I've got to come out and play four quarters of basketball.'"

With the, the Red Raiders advance to the Lower State final at the Citadel against Hemingway.

Bamberg-Ehrhardt (56)

Eric Buckner 21, Jahkiry Johnson 15, Jamon Greene 10, Presley 9, Wheeler 1, Bamberg 1

C.E. Murray (45)

Ferrell Walker 17, Emmanuel Brown 12, Keels 5, Wallace 5, Fulwood 3, Cyrus 3

-- T&D Sports Writer Emery Glover can be reached by e-mail at eglover@timesanddemocrat.com or by phone at 803-533-5532. Check out his blog, Cover 2, at www.thetandd.com. --

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