A strong run in the fourth quarter propelled the Nation Ford Falcons boys’ basketball to their third Region 3-5A win of the season by topping rival Catawba Ridge Copperheads.
The Falcons won 66-61 to improve to 3-7 in the region, as Catawba Ridge dropped to 3-7 in the region.
“It was a good team win,” said Nation Ford head coach Charles Brown. “When you are playing for each other, things work out. We improved our chances for the playoffs with the win.”
Both teams came into the game at 10-13 overall, but the Copperheads had the lead in Region 3-5A over the Falcons. Nation Ford is now 11-13, while Catawba Ridge drops to 10-14.
“We had three starters pick up three fouls early,” said Catawba Ridge head coach Brett Childers. “We had our moments. We put ourselves in a bad spot.”
Neither team got off to a fast start to open the game. Catawba Ridge did start on a 5-0 run. The Falcons were able to keep up after the initial Copperheads start. The two teams often traded the lead in the first quarter, but Catawba Ridge took a slim two-point lead into the second quarter.
The Copperheads were able to take a small six-point lead midway through the second quarter with the help of Nation Ford turnovers. That lead quickly went to an 11-point lead with about 90 seconds left in the first half for Catawba Ridge.
Nation Ford closed the gap some before the half, but were still down 34-24 at the half.
The Copperheads stayed consistent to open the second half. Anytime Nation Ford seemed to cut into their lead, Catawba Ridge would have an answer. Those answers caused more questions when the Falcons’ Ben Chuttey started hitting 3-pointers.
Nation Ford clawed their way back into the game tying it at 44. The Copperheads would add a basket before heading to the fourth quarter leading by two.
The fourth quarter was like the opening period, a lot of back and forth between the two teams. After tying the game at 51, Nation Ford went on a 9-0 run to getting its biggest lead in the game.
Miller Shelton got the Copperheads back in the game with three consecutive baskets pulling them within two.
Despite the effort, Nation Ford was able to get to the foul line and ice the game from there. Nation Ford went 13-for-17 from the foul line in the fourth quarter. Anthony Pryer led them with 19 points, while Chuttey had 17 points and Chase Walters had 15 points for the Falcons.
Catawba Ridge was led by 18 points from Kevin Butler, to go with 17 points from Elijah Peters and 14 points from Shelton.
Lady Falcons pull away
The Nation Ford girls’ basketball team used a strong second and third quarter to pull away from Catawba Ridge.
Nation Ford won 56-21 to improve to 12-12 overall and 6-4 in the region. Catawba Ridge dropped to 8-14 and 3-7 in the region.
“We played well,” said Nation Ford head coach Kelly Bennett. “We challenge them to get after it. I challenged them to play for the seniors.”
Aubrey Barney opened the game up with a 3-pointer for Nation Ford. Things then went cold for the Falcons, while Catawba Ridge also struggled to get things started as well.
Nation Ford finally shook off the slow start and started scoring. Turnovers became an issue for the Copperheads during the opening period, so much so they couldn’t get their offense going.
Catawba Ridge was finally able to start scoring some in the second quarter. That allowed them to pull within three of the Falcons.
Nation Ford came out of a timeout and went on a 12-0 run to again open a gap between the teams. The Falcons also put on more defensive pressure as the quarter went on and was able to take a 24-9 lead at the half.
The Falcons started the second half pressuring Catawba Ridge and scored the first 15 points of the third quarter to go up by 30.
Kayla Wilmore led with 13 points for Nation Ford and Ariah Heard added 11 for the Falcons. Addison Cunningham led the Copperheads with seven points.
Feb. 7 Roundup
The Fort Mill boys’ basketball team improved to 22-2 on the season after beating Clear Dot Charter 93-38 Friday night at home.
Mac Banks: mac@fortmillprepsports.com, @fortprep
