Bronny James Scores Career High as Sierra Canyon Beats St. Vincent-St. Mary

Adam Wells @adamwells1985Featured ColumnistDecember 15, 2019

LOS ANGELES, CA - DECEMBER 28: LeBron James Jr. stands on the court before the LA Clippers game against the Los Angeles Lakers on December 28, 2018 at STAPLES Center in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE via Getty Images)

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Bronny James played the role of hero for Sierra Canyon High School in Columbus, Ohio, on Saturday against his father's alma mater, St. Vincent-St. Mary.

Ranked No. 8 in the country by USA Today, Sierra Canyon ran its record to 8-0 in a thriller with a 59-56 win over the Fighting Irish.

LeBron James Jr. stole an inbounds pass with 39 seconds remaining and took the ball from half court to the basket for the go-ahead layup. The 15-year-old freshman finished with a career-high 15 points in the win.

Tarek Fattal @Tarek_Fattal
What a moment for LeBron James. Sees Bronny score a career high (15 points), get awarded MVP, and get the go-ahead steal and layup late in the game to help lift Sierra Canyon to a 59-56 win over LeBron’s alma mater St. Vincent-St. Mary. https://t.co/Qu8WwgF4J0

This game had the feeling of a high-level college game even before tipoff thanks to the presence of LeBron James, who was able to support his son since the Los Angeles Lakers had an off day.

ESPN @espn
LeBron arrives to watch Bronny and Sierra Canyon play against his alma mater, St. Vincent-St. Mary. Watch live now 🍿 https://t.co/kR7PaLSUVa https://t.co/iRYN6KvCrw

Once the game got started, Bronny was able to get his dad and the rest of the crowd pumped up with an impressive finish at the basket:

ESPN @espn
Bronny is heating up, and LeBron is out of his seat 👏 https://t.co/WQXtYX70wH

Given the magnitude of the matchup with two of the top programs in the country that entered undefeated, both teams kept trading body blows throughout. St. Vincent-St. Mary led at the end of the first three quarters, but the margin was never greater than four points.

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All of the pressure was on Bronny in this moment, playing in his home state and against the team where his father first became a phenomenon by gracing the cover of Sports Illustrated in 2002. He rose to the challenge with the highest-scoring game of his young career and earned MVP after leading his team to the win.