Sophomore Braylon Barnes helps Brandon get past Harrison Central in 6A Playoffs

BRANDON — The Bulldogs were down two guards, but they had a secret weapon in Saturday’s second-round matchup with Harrison Central.

That secret weapon was sophomore Braylon Barnes, who came up huge for Brandon with 25 points in the Bulldogs’ 58-54 win over the Red Rebels in the second round of the MHSAA Class 6A Playoffs.

“He stood up at crunch time in the game,” Brandon coach Fred Barnes said. “And that was huge, because he hasn’t practiced the last two days and we already had both our point guards out with concussions.”

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The younger Barnes put his stamp on every part of Saturday’s game.

The sophomore guard hit two three-pointers to keep the Bulldogs (23-7) in a tight first quarter, but Harrison Central junior Aujaylen Barron hit a couple of late layups to give the Red Rebels an early 12-11 lead.

Barnes hit two free throws to start the second quarter to give Brandon its first lead, then converted a layup a couple minutes later to put them ahead 22-19 midway through.

Brandon senior Isaiah Smith hit the biggest shot of the first half, with a three-pointer right before the buzzer to give the Bulldogs the 30-26 advantage at the break.

Harrison Central (16-10) cut it back to a one-point game in the opening moments of the second half on a three-pointer from sophomore Shaun Murray, but the momentum was short-lived. Ashton Kelly and Barnes hit back-to-back threes in response, and Brandon stretched the lead back out to seven at 36-29.

Later in the quarter, Barnes connected on a put-back that gave the Bulldogs their largest lead of the game at 42-33, but Jonavin Khan drilled a three-pointer for Harrison Central to trim it to 42-36 headed to the final period.

The Red Rebels hit three more three-pointers in the fourth quarter, but it wasn’t enough. Marcel Bridges came alive for Brandon and scored six points on three consecutive possessions. After junior Ottis Harrison drilled a three-pointer to put Brandon ahead 55-51 with 1:17 to go, Red Rebel senior Sean Holmes answered right back with a three to cut it the Brandon lead to one.

But the Bulldog defense never gave Harrison Central another good look at the basket, and Barnes made five out of six free throws in the clutch.

“We had a couple of seniors get injured with concussions, but the team stepped up and made big plays,” Braylon Barnes said. “I made some big plays myself, but right now I’m just proud of the team.”

When it came to hitting the free throws, Barnes said he only had one thing on his mind.

“I was just thinking about my teammates,” he said. “The seniors who were counting on me. They put their trust in me as a sophomore to make those free throws.”

Barnes was far from the only Bulldog who stepped up Saturday — Ashton Kelly scored 14 points off the bench after senior star Marcel Bridges got in early foul trouble, and Bridges came back strong in the second half to finish with 13 points.

The Bulldogs will face Terry in the quarterfinals at 8:30 p.m. next Saturday at Pearl River Community College in Poplarville. The Bulldogs (22-7) beat Pascagoula 48-46 on the road Saturday.

“I’m really proud of the way our guys played tonight, in spite of all the adversity,” Fred Barnes said. “I’m just glad it looks like we’re peaking at the right time.”