Down nine at halftime and facing a loaded POWER 5 squad, TJ Ford Elite dug deep in the second half of their Adidas Three Stripes Select Basketball tournament matchup in the Bryan/College Station area—and nearly pulled off the comeback.
The academy, coached by Timothy Ford—brother of NBA veteran TJ Ford and rooted in the legacy of former Willowridge standout talent—brought a roster full of Houston and Golden Triangle area players into what became the Game of the Week. Friendswood's Chase Richardson was the engine of the offense, finishing with a team-high 16 points and providing the spark for a second-half surge that had the deficit down to one at one point.
Richardson had help. Keshav Vijaykumar, also out of Friendswood, contributed 10 points with sharp shooting, while Wish Lombo of Cy Fair added nine, including a three-pointer off a Richardson feed. Maddox Davis of Kinkaid High School chipped in seven points and delivered a key layup to tie the game at 44 in the second half.
But POWER 5 had a weapon TJ Ford Elite couldn't contain. Five-star swing man Ahmed Nur posted 16 points, including a highlight-reel dunk, and Christian Cast took over down the stretch, finishing with a game-high 23 points to seal a 61-55 POWER 5 victory.
The loss stings, but the second-half effort from TJ Ford Elite—particularly Richardson's relentless play—showed the kind of competitive depth this Houston-area program brings to the summer circuit.
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