Champion coach Chris Adamek said the team’s sharpshooting came as a result from unselfish play and crisp passing.

“It’s amazing what you can do when nobody cares who gets the credit,” he said. “Whoever’s open, they find them the ball, and it’s a lot of fun to watch. I kind of get out of the way.”

Both teams were committed defensively from the tipoff, with Jefferson (26-10) leading Champion 8-6 after one quarter and the Chargers registering just two field goals — a pair of threes from junior forward Braden Baum — in the first.

“Jefferson’s defense is amazing,” Adamek said. “They’re an unbelievable team. They’re an awesome bunch. It took us a while to kinda open things up and get adjusted.”

But the Chargers started to see some shots fall in the second quarter and senior guard Jesse Peart provided a spark with seven points and a couple of steals to push Champion in front of Jefferson, 22-18, going into halftime.

“Jesse got some steals and kinda got himself going that way defensively,” Adamek said. “A lot of times, his defense turns into offense. But it was nice for him to get going, and once he got going, then it really opened up and our threes started going down.”

Champion’s double-digit threes was anything but out of the ordinary for a team with five players shooting at least 35 percent from beyond the arc on the season.

Baum registered a team-high four triples with 20 points and seven rebounds.

“He’s been so smooth,” Adamek said. “He had 44 in a district game earlier, so he is a walking bucket. He can really score. But he doesn’t have to. He does so many other things, rebounds well. He can handle for a 6-foot-6 kid out in space, too. He’s a really talented player. Everybody loves playing with him, and I’m thankful I get to coach him.”

The nightcap between Veterans Memorial and Brackenridge was even less competitive, as the Patriots raced out to an 18-6 lead in the first quarter, which proved insurmountable for an undersized Eagles squad.

“Every game, we try to do four things,” Patriots coach Steven Perez said. “We try to defend really well, and I thought we did. We try to get out in transition offense, and I thought we did that, too. Execution is, you always gotta watch the film. And then the last thing, we want to be good at transition defense, and I thought we were. Those are the four things that we try to do, and at this moment, I thought we did.”

Veterans Memorial’s playoff debut last week, a 42-38 win against Georgetown, was a bit closer than expected, but Perez said the team has gotten more comfortable as it’s progressed through the postseason.

“This is the first time for us being here,” he said. “After that first game, I think we got some nerves out and the guys kinda settled in. I thought we played well tonight. That’s a very good team over there, so we’re just fortunate.”

Brackenridge (24-11) closed the first half on an 8-2 run to cut the deficit to 29-17, but Veterans Memorial (30-5) burst out of the locker room with a 12-2 run to create some more separation.

“It was just trying to get back to getting in transition,” Perez said. “We’ve got a pretty deep team. We go eight or nine deep consistently, so we’re trying not to get away from that just because it’s the playoffs.”

The Patriots had three players tally 12 points — Devin McCloud, Jamaryon Thompson and Zackery Rigg. McCloud pulled down double-digit rebounds and consistently affected opponent shots in the paint.

“He’s just a special kid,” Perez said. “He’s just like the rest of the guys on the team. But he’s one that’s going to be pretty good. We’re very proud of that sophomore.”

Champion will take on Buda Johnson in the area round while Veternas Memorial will face off against Liberty Hill.