Staff Report
Two basketball teams that have steamrolled through the playoffs are scheduled to meet Tuesday afternoon for a spot in the state championship game.
The East Bladen Eagles (25-3) will play the Perquimans Pirates (28-2) for the N.C. High School Athletic Association 1A East championship. Tip is set for 4 p.m. inside Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Winston-Salem.
It’s the second straight season East Bladen has reached the East final, losing last March to Waccamaw Conference rival East Columbus 76-66. A win would put the Eagles in their fifth state championship game, having lost to Salisbury in the 2A finals in 2010 and 2011 and to Bishop McGuiness in the 1A finals in 2007 and 2009.
Tuesday’s winner will play for the title state Friday against the winner between Bishop McGuiness (27-2) and defending 1A champion Cherokee (26-2). Those teams will play Tuesday at 8 p.m.
Tickets for regional games may be purchased at the door for $15 cash or online at https://www.ljvm.com/events-tickets/ for $15 plus $1.50 per order online fee.
Tickets for state championship games scheduled Friday and Saturday may be purchased at the door for $20 cash or online at https://www.ljvm.com/events-tickets/ for $20 plus $1.50 per order online fee.
Parking is available in the Allegacy, Pepsi, Sierra, and Public Parking lots for $10 per car and $30 for charter buses. School buses are free.
East Bladen, led by seniors NeNe Ward and Lalia Smith, have won by an average of 37.5 points in its four playoff wins. The Eagles opened with a 74-19 win against Northwest Halifax, followed with a 60-13 triumph over Columbia, then won twice on the road, beating Wilson Prep 68-43 and North Duplin 68-45.
As impressive as those numbers are, Perquimans has more dominant numbers playing its four games at home as the East’s top seed. The Pirates have beaten Eno River Academy 62-10, North Edgecombe 76-24, Bear Grass Charter 77-37 and Wake Prep Academy 59-20 for an average margin of victory of 45.7 points.
Perquimans has won 11 straight games since a 44-37 non-conference loss to 4A Greenville Conley and shared the Four Rivers 1A/2A Conference title with Gates County with the teams splitting their regular season meetings. Gates County was eliminated by North Duplin in the second round of the NCHSAA playoffs.
The Pirates have averaged 57.6 points per game and allowed 27.2 points per game.
Seniors Lailana Marie Harris and Crishya Sellers have been the leaders for Perquimans. Harris averaged 16.2 points, 5 rebounds, 5.4 steals and 5.4 assists in 17 games, the most recent statistics available on MaxPreps. Sellers averaged 8 points, 7.7 rebounds and 5.3 steals per game.
For East Bladen, Ward has averaged 19 points, 5.1 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 5.4 steals per game while Smith has averaged 16 points, 8.2 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 4.8 steals per game.
The Eagles also rely on juniors Ariel Cromartie (10.6 points) and Niyah Wooten (7.1 rebounds) to help on offense and contribute to their pressure defense. East Bladen averages 22.7 steals per game.
East Bladen has won 13 straight games since a 60-52 non-conference loss at Topsail on Jan. 14. The Eagles score an average of 61.6 points per game and allow 32 points per game.
Both teams have had much success the past four seasons since the COVID-shortened season of 2020-21. East Bladen is 95-20 and Perquimans is 96-15.
Here is the schedule for regional championships (seeding in parenthesis):
Monday, March 10
3A West girls: (1) Stuart Cramer vs. (3) North Lincoln, 2 p.m.
3A East boys: (1) Swansboro vs. (2) Southern SES, 4 p.m.
3A East girls: (1) Terry Sanford vs. (2) Western Alamance, 6 p.m.
3A West boys: (11) Ben L. Smith vs. (12) Hunter Huss, 8 p.m.
Tuesday, March 11
1A West boys: (3) Queens Grant vs. (5) Corvian Community, 2 p.m.
1A East girls: (1) Perquimans vs. (7) East Bladen, 4 p.m.
1A East boys: (1) Washington County vs. (2) Southern Wake, 6 p.m.
1A West girls: (1) Bishop McGuinness vs. (2) Cherokee, 8 p.m.
Wednesday, March 12
4A West boys: (3) North Mecklenburg vs. (13) Chambers, 2 p.m.
4A East boys: (1) New Hanover vs. (3) Sanderson, 4 p.m.
4A East girls: (1) Hoggard vs. (2) Wakefield, 6 p.m.
4A West girls: (1) McDowell vs. (2) Lake Norman, 8 p.m.
Thursday, March 13
2A East girls: (2) Seaforth vs. (12) Southeast Alamance, 2 p.m.
2A East boys: (3) Northwood vs. (4) West Bladen, 4 p.m.
2A West girls: (1) North Wilkes vs. (2) East Burke, 6 p.m.
2A West boys: (1) Reidsville vs. (15) Bandys, 8 p.m.
Author: Sonny Jones
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