Catawba Ridge head boys’ basketball coach Brett Childers said he knew a fast start would be key against the Northwestern Trojans after several days of weather-related delays. However, the start wasn’t as fast as the finish.
The Copperheads overcame a halftime deficit to get a 64-54 win.
“We had a lull in the second period,” Childers said. “I felt it was going to be a game of runs.”
Originally scheduled to play Tuesday, the two teams tipped off Thursday evening in The Arena at Catawba Ridge High School.
The Copperheads jumped out to a 14-3 start, before the Trojans came back to make it 14-7 to end the first quarter.
The lead didn’t last long as the Trojans started the second quarter on a 9-2 run to tie the game at 16.
Northwestern caused multiple turnovers by the Copperheads, as they also missed several easy layups on offense. The Trojans also were able to get to the basket and were pretty good from beyond the 3-point arch.
Northwestern outscored Catawba Ridge 23-12 in the second quarter and led 30-26 at the half.
Catawba Ridge came out more aggressive in the second half attacking the basket. They also forced the Trojans into errors leading to turnovers, which they were able to take advantage of.
The Copperheads’ Isaiah Thomas tied the game at 41 with 1:45 left in the third quarter and then hit a 3-pointer to give them a lead on the next possession.
Catawba Ridge was the team with the strong quarter in the third as they outscored the Trojans 20-13.
The Copperheads kept the momentum moving to open the fourth quarter starting on a 6-2 run.
The offense for both teams slowed after the initial run by Catawba Ridge. Defensively, the Copperheads were able to hold Northwestern at bay and continue to force them into turnovers.
Thomas came alive for Catawba Ridge in the second half scoring 19 of his 22 points.
“He did a great job on both ends,” Childers said.
Mark Caslaru scored 23 points for the Copperheads to lead them and Preston Heffner added 12 points in the win. Catawba Ridge improved to 14-7 overall and 4-4 in Region 3-5A.
Girls’ basketball
The Catawba Ridge Lady Copperheads held off several rallies by Northwestern to come away with a 49-43 win.
“We played hard,” said Lady Copperheads head coach Sheridan Pressley. “We had some great runs. This late in the year, a win is a win.”
Both teams started slow, but the Copperheads, once they were able to find a rhythm, took off. Catawba Ridge hit their first four shots to go up 10-0.
Northwestern rallied to score the next 10 points to tie the game. The Copperheads would add one more point in the quarter to take a 11-10 lead to the second quarter.
One thing that aided Northwestern in the first half were the struggles with their ball handling leading to turnovers and extra opportunities for the Lady Trojans.
Northwestern started the second quarter on a 5-0 run before a Catawba Ridge timeout.
The Lady Copperheads were able to rally and went on a 7-0 run to regain the lead.
Northwestern wouldn’t go away and pulled within one before the half.
Catawba Ridge again started strong in the third quarter pushing their lead to 32-23 in the first three minutes of the quarter. A lot of that was points gained off turnovers from the Lady Trojans.
Like in the first half, Northwestern stuck around, playing better as the third quarter went on.
Catawba Ridge went up by 10 shortly after the start of the fourth quarter. It wasn’t long that the Lady Copperheads started struggling breaking half court pressure by Northwestern.
Despite the lead, the Lady Trojans stayed competitive chipping away at the Catawba Ridge lead through most of the final period.
The Lady Copperheads were able to hold on down the stretch with the help of Rilyn Grinch and Kayleigh Freeman, who both hit key 3-pointers in the fourth quarter. Both Grinch and Freeman had 15 points for Catawba Ridge to lead them.
The Lady Copperheads improved to 10-9 overall and 3-5 in Region 3-5A.
Jan. 29 Roundup
The Fort Mill girls’ basketball team edged Clover 52-49 to improve to 11-11 on the season overall and 6-2 in Region 3-5A. The Fort Mill boys’ basketball team fell 50-47 to drop to 6-2 in region play and 17-5 overall.
Mac Banks: mac@fortmillprepsports.com, @fortprep
