Sunday's under-17 championship game at Real Deal in the Rock offered a reprisal of one of the weekend's top matchups between Next Page Force and All-Arkansas Red -- teams featuring Magnolia's Derrian Ford and North Little Rock's Kel'el Ware, respectively.
For a second time in three days, Ford and Next Page Force came out on top.
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On Friday, Ford took a shot to the face before making the game-winning free throws with cotton in his nose to complete a 70-68 win. In the second half of Sunday's title game, Ford hit the Dunbar Community Center floor and exited alongside a medical trainer with 7:44 remaining as blood trickled from his forehead.
With the bleeding stopped momentarily, Ford returned to the court three minutes later and immediately sent home an alley-oop pass from teammate Landon Glasper, the first of five points Ford scored over the final 4:31 of the 55-45 championship victory.
"I'm glad my dad prepared me for moments like that," Ford said. "This was about heart. You can't buy heart. You have to have it in you for moments like that. That's always been instilled in me.
Ford's 18-point effort was enough to carry Next Page Force in the weekend finale. Ware recorded 8 points with 9 rebounds, 2 assists and a block, and teammate Javion Guy-King tallied 10 points, but the duo could not outmuscle the springy, 6-3 Ford. Alongside the guard, Next Force Page's Te Holiman scored eight points, and Cam Corhen added six while defending Ware, limiting the 7-foot big man to two points in the second half.
Ford was named under-17 tournament MVP following the performance, which closed out a weekend of dazzling displays that included his 22-point showing in Friday's opener and the 25-point, 10-rebound, 5-assist game he posted against Team Swish in bracket play Saturday.
"It's just the hard work that I put in paying off," Ford said. "I'm glad to have teammates that trust me to do what I do and I trust them to do what they do. We're just out here having a great time and enjoying the moments."
Later in the afternoon, Team Thad (Tenn.) topped Arkansas Rising Stars 56-48 in the 16-under championship game, and Woodz Elite (West Memphis) claimed the under-14 title with a 45-25 win against final Touch Elite (Hot Springs).
At the West Central Community Center, the Arkansas Hawks -- coached by tournament founder Bill Ingram -- claimed the under-15 championship, 60-48 over Team Thad, boosted by a combined 37 points from Annor Boateng and Kellen Robinson. Boateng completed the weekend with a 19-point, 7-rebound showing, bolstering the performance with 4 assists, 3 blocks, 3 steals and a series of highlight-reel dunks. He was named under-15 MVP following the win.
"Attacking the rim was really working for me," Boateng said. "I tried to have an all-around game, so I got my teammates involved. I had a more complete game instead of just scoring."
In the under-17 class, Guy-King began the day with 20 points, including the game-winning lay-in as time expired in a 73-71 semifinal win over Team Thad that sent All-Arkansas Red to the championship game. Ware notched 18 points with two blocks and a bundle of rebounds.
Ford scored 16 points in the other semifinal to carry Next Page Force past Arkansas Athletes Outreach Flight, 53-46.
The championship game still hung in the balance when Corey Washington's foul sent Ford tumbling to the floor with less than eight minutes to play. Glasper hit all three free throws in Ford's place after a technical was called on Washington, handing Next Page Force a 37-35 lead, its first of the half.
All-Arkansas Red had held the advantage until that point. Ware scored on back-to-back possessions in the opening minutes, as he scored six points and grabbed six rebounds in the opening quarter. Ware went quiet after the break, going scoreless for the final 12:10 as a 22-19 halftime lead slipped through All-Arkansas Red's hands.
"They made it tough for me inside," Ware said. "[On defense] they kept taking it in and getting foul calls. We can't do anything about that."
Ford drove to the basket and finished through contact on the first possession of the second half, and scored 11 of his 18 points after halftime.
"I have to come out in second half in attack mode and keep the defense on their toes," Ford said. "I found my rhythm in the second half."
While Ford received treatment feet away from the court after hitting the floor, Next Page Force carved out a 43-37 lead on free throws by Jessie Washington sandwiched between a pair of lay-ups from Holiman, and Ford's alley-oop finish 45 seconds after he returned in completing an 11-2 run dating back to Glasper's free throws.
Ford only returned to the game after a lengthy debate with the on-site trainer and his father and he exited twice more for treatment over the final four minutes. Blood soaked his white bandage as he stepped to the foul line with 16.5 seconds left, and no different from Friday, he knocked down both free throws to complete the victory.
"It was a big decision between me and my father to come back in," Ford said. "I wasn't sure if my dad was going to let me. But we've always said that whatever you start, you always finish."