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Christmas came three days early for Coffee County boys’ basketball this year.

Facing off against Siegel in the Santa Shootout championship game Monday evening, the Red Raiders held on to win 56-52 in front of the home crowd at Joe Frank Patch Gymnasium. The victory was also the team’s seventh straight since a road loss to Tullahoma on Nov. 24 and improved Coffee County’s record to 8-3 on the season.

Up 16-12 at the end of the first quarter, the Red Raiders continued to maintain their lead as the first half continued and went into the break ahead 31-23.

A quick start for Siegel early in the third quarter saw the Coffee County lead tightened to 31-28, but the Red Raiders responded with a 3-pointer from Luke Campbell and a 2-point basket from MJ Rollman to regain some of their lost space. The Stars once again climbed back into it as the quarter continued, this time cutting it to a 36-34 game. Coffee County went on to add six unanswered points, including four from Rollman and two from Jerrod Morgan, to head into the fourth quarter with a 42-34 lead.

Siegel once again tightened it up early in the new quarter, cutting the Coffee County lead to 42-38 on a pair of shots. Kaysen Lowery answered for the Red Raiders with back-to-back buckets from beyond the arc to put Coffee County ahead 48-38, which was followed by a basket from Audie Nicoll to make it a 12-point game.

The Red Raider lead had once again been reduced to four points by the game’s final seconds, but Siegel did not come any closer before time expired, sealing the tournament title for Coffee County.

Rollman took the top spot on the Red Raider offense with 19 points. Nicoll followed with 10 points, finishing just ahead of Campbell with nine points. Lowery and Morgan both came away with eight points each. Brody Sizemore had a single basket for two points.

Following the game, Nicoll, Lowery and Campbell were all named to the Santa Shootout all-tournament team from Coffee County. Rollman was named the tournament Most Valuable Player.

The Red Raiders will return to action the weekend following Christmas, traveling to Scottsboro, Alabama to take part in the Don Webb Classic. The tournament will begin Saturday before resuming next Monday and Tuesday, Dec. 29-30.