The Bainbridge High School Bearcats dropped a 72-64 decision to Albany’s Westover High School Patriots in the championship game of the Region 1-AAAA Basketball Tournament Friday at Americus-Sumter County High School.

A strong second half finish by the Bearcats made the region championship game with Westover close.

The Patriots led by 21 points at half time. The Bearcats mounted a comeback in the fourth quarter when senior Tyree Crump scored nine straight points to pull the Bearcats to within 12 at 60-48. Late buckets by Westover’s Alec Williams and Kris Gardner enabled the Patriots to hang on and pull out the victory in the fourth quarter.

“We just got too far behind early,” Bearcats Head Coach Rickey Mccullough said. “Double figure efforts by Tyree Crump, Myles Thomas and Trevon Shaw enabled us to come back and have a shot.”

Throughout the season coach Mccullough has talked about his players’ ability to score in key game situations and play strong defense. They showed that again Friday during the fourth quarter comeback attempt.

“Our strong defense has helped us stay in games and pull out victories,” Mccullough said.

As the second place finisher out of Region 1-AAAA, the Bearcats will host the Eagles Landing High School Eagles, the third place team in Region 4-AAAA, in the first round of the State Class AAAA Tournament today at 6 p.m. The Eagles are 24-4 on the season.