Senior Zyan Hager hit three consecutive fourth-quarter 3-pointers in an electric two-minute stretch to help the Catawba Ridge Copperheads secure a 66-59 victory Tuesday night at crosstown rival Nation Ford Falcons.
The Copperheads and Falcons were tied at 55-55 with about five minutes left in the game when Hager, who scored 27 points, nailed his second three-pointer of the game. He then followed that up with two more long shots, each attempt about a step further back from the line. His final shot completed a 9-2 spark over about two minutes, and Hager roared in approval as Nation Ford called a timeout.
“This is a good one,” said Catawba Ridge coach Brett Childers. “We haven’t traditionally played well here. This is a good team, and coach (Charles) Brown is a good coach. To win here in a hostile environment is hard. We’re still learning each other, and the guys battled all second half.”
Nation Ford was unable to score a field goal in the final 80 seconds, and the Copperheads hung on to extend their win streak to 6-0 to start the season.
Lance Barnes scored 21 points for Catawba Ridge and Landon Foley had seven points for the Copperheads.
Jackson Burnham led all Falcons, now 3-1, with 27 points, while Caden Giles and Chase Walters both chipped in nine apiece and Ben Chuttey had eight points.
Catawba Ridge entered halftime with a six-point lead, but Nation Ford fought back with a 20-point third quarter. Chuttey and Burnham both hit treys to cut the lead to three points. Falkner and Giles then hit shots to open the fourth quarter, with Giles slamming home the game’s first dunk to gift Nation Ford its first lead of the night, 52-51. But Barnes answered with a dunk of his own two possessions later, and Hager was clinical from three-point land.
“We’ve been fighting all season,” said Nation Ford coach Charles Brown. “We’ve found ourselves in familiar territory. We don’t get beat very badly, but we find ourselves in situations where we have to make smart basketball decisions, and we didn’t make those decisions.”
Childers praised Barnes for his contributions on both sides of the court.
“Lance is playing at a high level right now,” he said. “We rely on him to get us organized, get us set, call the defense, get the ball to the right people and score for himself. Some people forget, he’s only a sophomore.”
Up next, Catawba Ridge next hosts Fort Mill 8 p.m. Friday, Dec. 8. The Copperheads defeated the Yellow Jackets in their first meeting 62-51 on Friday, Dec. 1. Nation Ford next travels to play at Northwestern 7:45 p.m. Friday, Dec. 8. The Falcons beat the Trojans 66-62 on Monday, Dec. 4.
Lady Falcons grab second consecutive win
The Lady Falcons outscored the Lady Copperheads 19-12 in the fourth quarter to pull away from their crosstown rivals at home Tuesday night.
Morgan Davis led all Copperheads with 16 points, while Ariah Heard paced the Falcons with 14 points.
Nation Ford, now 2-2, entered the halftime break with a five-point lead. Catawba Ridge cut the lead to 25-24 with about two minutes left in the third quarter when Aubrey Barney hit a trey and Davis notched a breakaway layup.
Leading by just two points entering the final quarter, Nation Ford held Catawba Ridge to just three fourth-quarter field goals.
Meanwhile, Aubrey Morrow, Heard, and Jalyn Bennett all hit multiple shots to pad the Falcons’ lead in front of a rowdy student section. The Lady Falcons enjoyed a 9-3 surge throughout the middle of the quarter, and the Copperheads, which fell to 1-4, couldn’t get their offense flowing.
Catawba Ridge made just four of their 10 fourth-quarter shots from the foul stripe.
“Our young ones finally understand what it takes to win a ballgame,” said Nation Ford head coach Kelly Bennett. “When we needed it most, we could settle down. That’s key. As long as we can do that, I have a feeling we can win. We just need to take it one day at a time.”
Up next,Catawba Ridge next hosts Fort Mill 6 p.m. Friday, Dec. 8. The Lady Copperheads fell on the road to the Yellow Jackets 37-26 in their first meeting on Friday, Dec. 1. Nation Ford next travels to play at Northwestern 6 p.m. Friday, Dec. 8. Nation Ford defeated the Lady Trojans 48-24 on Monday, Dec. 4.
