No. 1 Sunrise Christian Academy locked up the top seed in the GEICO nationals on Friday night, defeating No. 3 Link Academy by a final score of 74-65 at the Heartland Hoops Classic.
The loss was Link Academy’s first of the season after it entered the game 26-0.
Duke commit Dillon Mitchell led Sunrise Christian Academy with a game-high 23 points, while Kansas signee Gradey Dick scored 16 points and junior Scotty Middleton chipped in 13 points.
Sunrise Christian Academy jumped out to a 21-13 first quarter lead and looked poised to put Link Academy away early after going up by 12 early in the second quarter. Link Academy responded and ultimately cut Sunrise Christian Academy’s lead to 35-30 at halftime.
Link Academy trimmed Sunrise Christian Academy’s lead to 48-44 at the end of the third quarter. Sunrise Christian Academy made the plays to put the game away down the stretch, as four-star junior Layden Blocker came up clutch and Dick hit a three to make it an 11-point game with three minutes left.
Next up for Sunrise Christian Academy is a trip to the Dr. Pepper Classic next weekend. Link Academy will remain at the Heartland Hoops Classic for a Saturday night matchup with Wasatch Academy.
