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Photos by Kenneth Armstrong
BURGAW – Sophomore Adonis Avery blistered the nets with seven 3-point shots to lead an East Bladen barrage of fourteen 3-point baskets that rallied the Eagles to an 83-80 overtime victory over West Bladen Thursday night in the semi-finals of the Four County Conference Boys Basketball Tournament.
“Wow!’ exclaimed Eagle Coach Kenzil McCall. “What a game. I have to tip my hat to my kids. They busted their tails out there tonight.”
With the win the Eagles advanced to Friday night’s tourney championship game against top-seeded Clinton at 7:30 p.m.
Eian Hines drained a 3-point shot for the first basket of the game that gave the Eagles their only lead in regulation play. West Bladen’s John Bowen answered with a 3-point basket then banked in an 8-footer. Senior Sayaun Dent pulled up for a 12-footer and a 7-3 Knight lead.
Junior Xavier Wooten turned a Sincere Smith assist into a lay-up, but the Knights responded with an 11-2 spurt. Junior Johnathan Robinson put in a follow, and senior Kalvin Page drove for a lay-up.
Junior Scott Bowen knocked down a corner 3-ball for West, but Eian Hines scooped in a 6-footer to keep East within 14-7. Page sank 2 free throws then found John Bowen inside for a lay-up and an 18-7 Knight lead at the quarter break.
Junior Gerardo Reyes connected on a corner 3-ball that gave the Knights their biggest lead at 21-7 19 seconds into the second quarter.
Senior Demetrius Wooten drove for a lay-up, Avery buried a 3-point shot, and Eian Hines hit a free throw and banked in a floater that closed the gap to 21-15.
Dent banked in a short jumper, but Eian Hines answered with a runner. Robinson flipped in a jump-hook, but Avery bombed in another 3-ball. Dent hurled in a runner, but Avery delivered another 3-ball to pull East within 27-23 with 2:03 left in the half.
John Bowen turned a lay-up into a 3-point play, and Robinson dropped in a lay-up in transition. Eian Hines raced for an Eagle lay-up, but Robinson converted a Page pass into a lay-up and a 34-25 halftime lead.
Robinson hurled in a long jump-hook to start the second half, but Xavier Wooten netted a lay-up off of a Demetrius Wooten assist. Dent put back his own rebound for a 38-27 West lead.
Back came the Eagles as Smith and Avery pumped in 3-point shots. Page hit 2 free throws, but Eian Hines and Avery both scored inside baskets to slice the West lead to 40-37.
Dent drained a 3-pointer, and John Bowen scored a lay-up. Eian Hines drilled a 3-pointer, and brother Ethan Hines converted a lay-up off of an in-bounds pass. Demetrius Wooten hit a free throw to cut the West lead to 45-43.
Dent swished a 17-footer, but senior Denzel Johnson fired in a 3-point shot to trim the margin to 47-46 at the quarter break.
Page drove for a Knight lay-up, but Avery tied the game 49-49 with a 3-pointer from the left wing. John Bowen hooked in a follow, converted a Page feed into a lay-up and knocked down a 3-pointer for a 56-49 lead with 5:53 on the clock.
Johnson halted the run with a 3-ball for East, and Demetrius Wooten banked in a 6-footer. John Bowen dunked in a follow then buried a long 3-pointer from the top of the key for a 61-54 with 2:56 remaining.
“West made some big shots,” said Coach McCall. “When John (Bowen) hit that long three, I thought that might be it.”
Eian Hines tossed in a floater from the lane, and Smith muscled in a rebound. John Bowen hit a free throw, and Scott Bowen got behind the Eagle press for a lay-up and a 64-58 lead with 1:24 left.
Eian Hines responded with a jumper from the lane, and Avery delivered another 3-ball to slice the lead to 64-63 with 55 ticks on the clock. Dent made 2 free throws, but Eian Hines drove for another lay-up and a 66-65 margin at the 19-second mark.
Junior Jimmy Williams cashed in 2 free throws with 10 seconds left for a 68-65 lead, but Johnson nailed a 3-point shot from the right wing with 4 seconds remaining to tie the game and force overtime.
“We didn’t listen and do what we had been told to do to stop that play,” said Knight Coach Travis Pait. “We had our chances to win, but didn’t get it done on the floor. East Bladen played well.”
Dent muscled in a runner and tacked on a free throw for a 71-68 lead in overtime, but Eian Hines sank a 3-pointer to tie the game. Dent spun to the hoop for a lay-up, but Ethan Hines canned 2 free throws to tie the game again.
Page drove the baseline for a lay-up, but Avery banked in a 3-point shot for East Bladen’s first lead in almost 34 minutes at 76-75. A pair of Dent free throws edged West ahead 77-76 with 1:05 on the clock.
An Avery pass set up Smith’s lay-up that put the Eagles ahead to stay 78-77 with 53 seconds remaining. Smith made 3 of 4 free throws to up the count to 81-77 with 24 seconds left.
Dent drove for a lay-up, and after an East miss, Page hit a free throw to trim the margin to 81-80 with 6 seconds remaining. Avery hit 2 free throws with 5.6 seconds left to account for the final margin.
Eian Hines topped the East Bladen with 26 points and 5 rebounds. Avery followed with 25 points. Smith finished with 10 points and 6 rebounds, and Johnson totaled 9 points.
John Bowen posted a double-double of 25 points and 10 rebounds for West. Dent followed with 24 points and 9 rebounds. Page finished with 11 points, 6 rebounds and 4 steals. Robinson totaled 10 points.
“I wish we had this group together all year,” said Coach McCall whose team has had Sincere Smith and Ethan Hines return recently from injuries. “We said we were going to try and get it together by the conference tournament.”
“Adonis hit some big shots,” said McCall. “Having Ethan back gives us another athlete. Skippy (Smith) played hard. We didn’t quit.”
After Tuesday’s win over second-seeded Wallace-Rose Hill, Coach McCall said that he had received a number of texts comparing the Eagles’ situation to N. C. State’s 1983 “Cardiac Pack” who had to win their conference tournament to advance to the national tournament. A win over Clinton Friday would put the Eagles in the state play-offs.
West Bladen, now 17-9, will wait for Saturday when the NCHSAA pairings will be announced. The Knights are expected to receive a first-round home game.
EB (83) – Eian Hines 26, Xavier Wooten 4, Denzel Johnson 9, Ethan Hines 4, Adonis Avery 25, Sincere Smith 10, Demetrius Wooten 5, Robbie Cooley.
West Bladen (80) – Kalvin Page 11, Scott Bowen 5, Jimmy Williams 2, Keshawn Lewis, Drew Harris, Sayaun Dent 24, Geraldo Reyes 3, Jonathan Robinson 10, John Bowen 25.
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