Fort Mill head coach Myron Lowery said his team’s recent practices have been all about intensity, spacing on the court, and making smart shots.
The Yellow Jackets showed all three elements Tuesday, Jan. 20, overpowering their crosstown rivals Nation Ford in a 74-67 home win.
Lowery said his team felt motivated from last Friday’s low-scoring 45-38 loss to Indian Land, and wanted to focus on getting the ball inbounds quickly, attacking the basket, and forcing their opponents to guard them.
That focus paid off in dividends for Fort Mill on Tuesday, as the Yellow Jackets got out to an early lead and never looked back.
Sophomore point guard Jermier Nelson (24 points) and senior shooting guard AJ Washington (23 points) led the Yellow Jackets on offense. Senior guard Wallace Campbell chipped in 12 points, and senior shooting guard George Stewart added seven.
Senior point guard Chase Walters scored 21 of his game-high 33 points in the second half, including two treys in the fourth quarter, to keep the Falcons within touching distance. His final 3-pointer, with 23.3 seconds left on the clock, cut the Fort Mill lead to 70-65. But the Yellow Jackets hit 11 of their 14 foul shots in the fourth quarter, keeping the visitors at bay.
With the win, Fort Mill improves to 16-4 overall and 5-1 Region 3-5A. Nation Ford drops to 14-6 overall and 3-3 in region play.
“Coming off the loss, it had a lot to do with it,” Lowery said. “Our practices have been at a different level, to say the least. We played with better tempo and pace today. We stressed to them that we needed a better pace.”
Washington scored 10 of his team’s first 19 points, including two treys, to help Fort Mill take a six-point lead in a quick-paced first quarter. Nelson knocked down his eight more points in the first 2:30 of the second quarter, and Washington knocked down his third shot from beyond the arc to push the lead to 30-17 and force Nation Ford into a timeout.
Nation Ford outscored Fort Mill 11-6 in the final three minutes to cut the lead heading into the halftime break to 10.
Lowery praised his team for leading 41-31 at halftime, a marked improvement from last week’s game-high total of 38 against Indian Land.
“We ran fewer plays and let them get in the flow of the game,” he said. “We’ve got a lot of players who can go to the basket, and we let them do that tonight.”
Walters scored all of Nation Ford’s nine third-quarter points to keep his team in the contest. Down 52-40 heading into the final quarter, Nation Ford was forced to foul Fort Mill players more often and hope for easier shots.
Freshman guard AJ Cureton (7 points) hit a trey at the top of the key to cut the Fort Mill lead to seven with 4:30 left. Walters did the same just seconds later, but that shot was matched by Fort Mill’s George Springer on the other end.
In the end, Fort Mill proved unshakeable from the foul stripe, and Nation Ford couldn’t overtake the Yellow Jackets’ lead.
Freshman guard Makai McKnight added 15 points for the Falcons.
Lowery said Walters was “at the top of the scouting report” for Nation Ford, and said the senior had a strong basketball IQ.
“He made some really tough shots,” he said. “A rivalry game isn’t big for him, and we tried our best to limit him.”
Lowery praised Nelson’s ability to cause havoc in the paint, which also allowed teammates to get open. Nelson finished 9-of-11 from the free throw line.
Both teams return to region action Friday night. Fort Mill hosts crosstown rival Catawba Ridge, while Nation Ford travels to Northwestern High in Rock Hill.
Girls’ basketball
Junior guard Colbie Wolf scored 12 of her 15 points in the second half, while senior forward Kate Marker (13 points) knocked down six buckets, to help Fort Mill earn their fourth region win of the season with a 46-36 win.
With the win, Fort Mill improves to 9-11 overall and 4-2 in Region 3-5A. Nation Ford falls to 8-11 overall and 3-3 in the region.
Nation Ford got off to a 7-0 streak in the opening 5:30. Fort Mill responded in the second quarter with 3-pointers from Marker and Izzy Zook to take a narrow edge with 4:30 remaining in the first half.
But the Lady Falcons ended the half with a 8-0 run in the final three minutes that included buckets by Aubrey Morrow (6 points) and Haven Land (10 points), as well as a Land trey that beat the halftime buzzer, to give the visitors a 20-16 lead heading into the locker room.
The Yellow Jackets then outscored Nation Ford 17-9 in the third. Marker connected with two layups to start the second half, while Wolf nailed a corner trey to overturn Nation Ford’s lead. Wolf then hit two bank shots, one from each corner, to help push Fort Mill’s lead to four.
The Yellow Jackets scored three quick buckets to open the fourth quarter on an 8-2 run.
Land’s second trey cut the lead to six, but Fort Mill hit six of its seven free throw shots in the fourth quarter to keep Nation Ford at a distance.
Fort Mill head coach Nathan Wruble said his team improved once shots started falling in the second half, and that he was proud that his team chipped in on defense.
Eighth-grade guard Journi Berry and junior guard Vivian Bunting each added five points. Mia Kurowski scored seven points for the Lady Falcons.
