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Photos by Kenneth Armstrong
ELIZABETHTOWN – West Bladen rallied in the second half to overcome an 11-point deficit and defeat East Bladen 88-85 Friday night in Three Rivers Conference boys basketball action.
East Bladen led 47-39 at halftime, but Knight senior Jimmy Williams banked in a 3-point shot, and senior Gerardo Reyes turned an assist from senior Jonathan Robinson into a lay-up then cut the East lead to 48-46 with a pair of free throws.
Eagle guard Adonis Avery hit 2 free throws, and senior Messiah Leach popped in a 16-footer and a free throw for a 53-46 Eagle lead.
Williams answered with a lay-up, Reyes drilled in a 3-point shot and freshman Shyron Adams put back a rebound to tie the game 53-53.
Avery and Knight junior Keshawn Lewis traded lay-ups. Leach raced for a lay-up and a 57-55 Eagle lead, but Robinson tied the game with 2 free throws. Lewis pulled up for a baseline jumper that kept West up 59-58 at the quarter break after junior Keshaun Davis made a free throw for East.
Senior Sincere Smith powered in a lay-up to give the Eagles their final lead at 60-59 with 7:02 remaining. Junior Kerron Baldwin-Washington connected on a 12-footer to vault West ahead, and Williams sank 2 free throws for a 63-60 Knight lead.
Avery banked in a runner for East, but junior Jaheim Lesane nailed a 3-point shot, and junior Drew Harris muscled in a lay-up to pad the West lead to 68-62.
East’s Smith and West’s Lewis traded lay-ups and 2 free throws each to keep the margin at 72-66. Six-seven junior Jackson Norris dropped in a lay-up off of an Adams’ assist then flipped in an 8-footer to offset an Avery basket and keep West up 76-68.
Smith hit 2 free throws, and Avery scored in transition to whittle the margin to 76-72 with 3:10 left. Reyes cashed in 2 free throws, and Harris banged in a rebound. After Bryon Bowen’s lay-up for East, Williams drained a 3-point shot for an 83-74 Knight lead with 1:56 on the clock.
A Leach lay-up and 3 lay-ups by Davis rallied the Eagles as West Bladen missed 5 of 8 free throws. However Williams sealed the verdict by sinking 2 free throws with ten seconds left for an 88-82 Knight lead. Avery’s 3-pointer with 1.8 seconds left sliced the final margin to 88-85.
“I didn’t think we competed in the first half,” said Knight Coach Travis Pait. “We did a better job in the second half. They are faster than us, but our pace is hard to get used to and we try to keep the pressure on and wear you down. That helped us in the fourth quarter.”
Williams poured in 20 points to lead the Knight scoring and added 5 rebounds and 3 steals. Reyes pumped in 15 points and grabbed 5 rebounds. Lewis finished with 9 points, and Baldwin-Washington, Adams and Robinson scored 8 points each.
Robinson and Adams grabbed 9 rebounds each as the Knights held a 44-35 edge on the boards.
“I thought Jaheim had a really good game,” noted Coach Pait. “Keshawn did a lot of good things for us, and Jackson made some really big plays. He was very effective for us tonight.”
Avery topped all scorers with 22 points for the Eagles. Davis followed with 16 points, and Smith racked up 15 points and 6 rebounds. Leach totaled 10 points, and Bowen added 8 points.
Freshman Javant McDowell pulled down a team-high 9 rebounds before fouling out with 4:35 left, and Davis grabbed 8 rebounds. Smith fouled out with 2:34 left.
Adams opened the game with a 3-point shot for West, but Davis drove for a lay-up and Smith cashed in 2 free throws for East. Robinson edged the Knights ahead 5-4 with a follow shot.
A McDowell follow and a Smith lay-up were answered by Tyre Boykins’ 2 free throws for West. Leach fired in a 3-ball for an 11-7 East lead, but another Boykin lay-up and a Lesane free throw made it 11-10.
A Smith tap-in and a McDowell hook put the Eagles up 15-10. Reyes popped in an 8-footer, and Williams lobbed in an 8-foot fade-away then drilled in a 3-ball for a 17-15 Knight lead.
Bowen drove for a lay-up then connected on a 15-footer, and Avery canned a jumper then knocked down a 3-pointer for a 25-18 East lead at the quarter break.
Robinson put back a rebound and Lesane canned a 12-footer for West in the second quarter, but McDowell hit an 8-footer and Davis and Zaire Turner-Dobson scored lay-ups for East.
Reashoid Pone buried a 14-footer that grew the Eagle lead to 33-22. Adams and Baldwin-Washington bombed in 3-pointers that closed the gap to 33-28. Back came East with lay-ups by Bowen, Davis and Avery for a 39-28 lead.
Baldwin-Washington and Williams sandwiched 3-point bombs for West around a Turner-Dobson turn-around. Avery and senior Deondre Newkirk pushed the East lead back to 45-34 with lay-ups.
Reyes drained a 3-point shot for West, but Avery banked in a 6-footer for East. Boykin’s 2 free throws pulled the Knights to within 47-39 at halftime.
“It was a good win for us,” added Coach Pait. “We have won 3 of our last 4 games and have really been playing hard. I am proud of the guys.”
West Bladen will travel to East Columbus Saturday for a 2 p.m. Three Rivers Conference play-in game. East Bladen will visit South Robeson Saturday for a play-in game at 2 p.m.
Eagle seniors Zaire Turner-Dobson, Reashoid Pone, Messiah Leach, Sincere Smith and Deondre Newkirk were honored in Senior Night activities.
WEST BLADEN (88) – Drew Harris 4, Jaheim Lesane 6, Kerron Baldwin-Washington 8, Jimmy Williams 20, Keshawn Lewis 9, Tyre Boykin 6, Shyron Adams 8, Trashawn Ballard, Gerardo Reyes 15, Jackson Norris 4, Trenton Lyons, Jonathan Robinson 8.
EAST BLADEN (85) –Adonis Avery 22, Bryon Bowen 8, Keshaun Davis 16, Messiah Leach 10, Pierce Melvin, Javant McDowell 6, Sincere Smith 15, Deondre Newkirk 2, Reashoid Pone 2, Robert Cooley, Zaire T. Dobson 4.
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