Wednesday’s first-ever Tipoff at the Dam final pitted teams and head coaches very familiar with each other.

It featured Region 5-5A rivals River Bluff and Dutch Fork led, respectively, by two Lexington High School graduates Benjamin Lee and Bret Jones.

A year after setting a school record for victories, the host team Gators are off to a similar start. They defeated the Silver Foxes 58-48 to take home the tournament title and improve to 3-0 on the season.

“You can’t complain too much when you win 3 in a row in a tournament,” Jones said. “I will take that and we’ll learn lessons from how we played and try to do better next week.”

The Gators held a 28-26 halftime lead before breaking the game open in the second half. They outscored Dutch Fork 13-4 in the third quarter and extended their lead as many as 16 points.

J.T. Reeves led the charge with a team-high 16 points and Lee praised the growth in his confidence and leadership ability

“He’s always been able to play,” Lee said. “Now he’s a little more demonistrative demanding the ball at the right time in closing out games. He’s very important to have on the floor for us.”

The Silver Foxes used a 11-5 run to close the gap to eight points. Chase Raymond led Dutch Fork with a game-high 17 points and Jarvis Green added 12.

OTHER SCORES

Spring Valley 62, Chapin 35

Mid-Carolina 43, Eau Clarie 35

Wando 70, Lugoff-Elgin 47