BLADENBORO – West Columbus guards Amajae Lowery and Unique Kelly combined for 41 points, and the Vikings held off a West Bladen rally to post a 63-50 victory Tuesday in the opening round of the Bladen Offroad Christmas Tournament.
Lowery topped all scorers with 21 points, and Kelly finished with 20 points for the Vikings. Teammates Naqiis Johnson and Xander Axelberg tallied 6 points each.
Sophomore Malachi Allen led the Knights with 16 points, and freshman Hezekiah Adams followed with 15 points. Junior Gary Parker pumped in 8 points, and senior Javonta Matthews contributed 6 points and 5 rebounds. Freshman Chase Williams pulled down 5 rebounds for the Knights.
Lowery delivered a pair of 3-point shots, and Kelly threw in a 3-ball as the Vikings built a 12-5 1st period lead. Parker turned an Adams assist into a 3-point play, and Williams flipped in a short jumper for the Knights.
A trio of Allen free throws sliced the margin to 12-8, but Kelly bombed in another 3-ball, and Donte Moore dropped in a follow to grow the lead to 17-9. Kelly and Lowery threw in 3-balls as the lead grew to 30-17 at halftime. Allen added a lay-up for the Knights who converted only 7 of 14 free throw attempts in the final 6 minutes of the half.
The Viking lead grew to 35-19 after halftime, before Allen cashed in 2 free throws then buried a 3-point shot. Adams drove for a lay-up then nailed a 3-point shot. Parker dashed end-to-end for a lay-up then powered in a rebound that cut the lead to 42-33. West Columbus led 44-34 at the 3rd quarter break.
Adams drilled in a fade-away 16-footer to open the final period. Allen canned 2 free throws, and Parker and Josiah Brown netted one foul shot each to close the gap to 46-40.
Kelly turned a steal into a 3-point play, but Adams answered with a lay-up, and Allen fired in a 3-ball to keep the Knights within 51-45 at the 3:20 mark. A Matthews follow shot, and another Adams lay-up pulled West Bladen to within 53-49 with 2:08 left.
Axelberg muscled in a lay-up, Jaylen Bellamy turned a steal into a lay-up, and Johnson swished a corner 3-ball that sealed the verdict for the Vikings at 60-49 with 1:09 remaining.
“We still had a chance to win the game there at the end, but we were slow on some of our defensive rotations and it cost us,” said Knight Coach Travis Pait. “Our freshmen and sophomores played like freshmen and sophomores.”
The Knights, now 6-3, will play Dillon Christian in the consolation bracket at 4 p.m. Wednesday. West Columbus will play Wilmington Laney in the tournament semi-finals at 8 p.m.
West Columbus 12 18 14 19 -63
West Bladen 5 12 17 16 – 50
West Columbus (63) –Amajae Lowery 21, Unique Kelly 20, Naqiis Johnson 6, James Smith 4, Jaden Elmore, Xander Axelberg 6, Donte Moore 2, Jaylen Bellamy 4, Cameron Eady.
West Bladen (50) – Hezekiah Adams 15, Josiah Brown 2, Malachi Allen 16, Keshawn Ballard 1, Gary Parker 8, Javonta Matthews 6, Chase Williams 2, Travail Baldwin.
About Author
