The Fort Mill Yellow Jackets boys’ basketball team got a 45-37 win over the Catawba Ridge Copperheads snapping a seven-game losing streak against their rivals on Friday night.
“That is exactly the type of game I wanted,” said Fort Mill head coach Myron Lowery. “I wanted to keep them under 40. We made a lot of adjustments since the last time we played. They followed the game plan.”
Both teams came out trading points matching each other shot for shot. Neither seemed to get a good advantage through the first quarter as they ended the quarter tied at 9.
Fort Mill started the second quarter on an 8-0 run before a Copperheads timeout to go up 17-9. Fort Mill got several second chance points in the run and pushed their lead to 19-9 with about 1:50 left in the half as the game turned into a defensive battle.
The Jackets took a 22-12 lead into the locker room at the half as neither team took a foul shot in the first half.
The Jackets and Copperheads traded momentum in the third quarter as Catawba Ridge played better making a dent in the Fort Mill lead.
Both Lance Barnes and Quh Webb got involved more for the Copperheads in the third quarter as they were shutout from scoring in the first half.
Both teams were more patient with the ball and their offense in the second half.
Catawba Ridge got the game down to just a five-point lead right before the end of the third quarter, but Nas Berry drilled a big 3-pointer to give the Jackets a 34-27 lead. Berry came up big for the Jackets in the second half scoring nine points.
Catawba Ridge struggled to score early in the fourth quarter and couldn’t cut into Fort Mill’s lead as they went up 38-29.
Both teams struggled with turnovers in the quarter, but really couldn’t get an advantage over the other. The Copperheads did cut the Fort Mill lead to four with 2:33 left in the game, but really didn’t consistently make up any more ground. Fort Mill was able to milk the clock and hold onto their lead for the win.
“They had a great game plan,” said Catawba Ridge head coach Brett Childers. “They executed it well. We could never find a rhythm. They made the game slow down.”
Berry led Fort Mill with 13 points and Christian McCain added 10 points.
Catawba Ridge was led by Zyan Hager with 12 points. Barnes added nine points.
Fort Mill improved to 3-2 on the season, while the Copperheads dropped to 6-1.
Lady Jackets still perfect
The Fort Mill Lady Jackets are 5-0 for the first time in a more than a decade with a 52-31 win over the Catawba Ridge Copperheads.
The Jackets beat the Copperheads for the first time on their court Friday night as Catawba Ridge fell to 1-5 on the season.
Fort Mill started the game 6-0 with back-to-back 3- pointers by Jada Chambliss and Reagan Reyes.
Catawba Ridge struggled in the early going in getting any offensive possessions as turnovers were an issue for them.
The Jackets had a 13-4 lead after the first quarter with them getting second chance opportunities to pull ahead.
Catawba Ridge played better to open the second quarter as they matched Fort Mill shot for shot, but struggled to gain any ground.
After a Fort Mill timeout, the Jackets went on a 9-0 run to go to the locker room leading 28-9.
Catawba Ridge had 14 unofficial turnovers in the first half. They continued to struggle with giving the ball away in the second half as Fort Mill was able to extend their lead getting a lot of shots in transition off the turnovers.
Fort Mill didn’t have a particularly strong offensive performance in the third quarter, but had such a big lead it didn’t matter.
The Jackets ended the quarter leading 39-16 as Fort Mill hit just 4-of-17 shots from the field in the quarter.
The Copperheads cut down on the turnovers in the fourth quarter and played better to open the final period. Addison Cunningham scored eight of her 14 points in the fourth quarter. Morgan Davis had 15 points for Catawba Ridge as well.
Fort Mill was led by Clare Moore with 11 points.
Catawba Ridge plays South Point (North Carolina) hosting them Monday, Dec. 11. Fort Mill also plays South Point (North Carolina) next on Tuesday, Dec. 12 when they travel to the Gaston County school.
Dec. 8 Roundup
The Nation Ford girls’ and boys’ varsity basketball teams swept Northwestern Friday night. The varsity girls won 41-24 to improve to 3-2 on the season, while the varsity boys won 43-40 improving to 4-1 overall. Nation Ford host Lancaster Tuesday, Dec. 12 for their next game.
Mac Banks: mac@fortmillprepsports.com, @fortprep
