Boys Basketball
West Bladen’s ‘Big Three’ of Sayaun Dent, Shaquille Johnson and Stefan McDonald combined for 55 points and 24 rebounds Friday night as they led the Knights to an 80-57 non-conference boys basketball victory over visiting West Columbus.
Dent, a junior forward, posted a double-double of 22 points, 10 rebounds and 2 assists to lead the Knights. Johnson, a high-flying sophmore, finished with 18 points, 5 rebounds and 2 blocks.
McDonald scored 15 points, grabbed 9 rebounds and had 5 steals. The senior guard opened the game with a driving lay-up then dished an assist to senior Malique McDowell for a lay-up.
Dent drilled a 3-pointer from the left corner then raced for a transition lay-up and a 9-3 lead. McDonald and Dent drove for lay-ups, and Dent put back a rebound for a 15-7 lead.
Senior Will Lambeth beat the Viking press for a lay-up, and McDonald lobbed a pass to Johnson for a lay-up then stole the ball and raced for a lay-up and a 22-14 lead at the quarter break.
A Dent pass resulted in a Johnson lay-up to start the second period. Dent’s driving lay-up turned into a 3-point play, and McDonald canned 2 free throws for a 30-18 Knight lead.
Senior Jonathan Russ turned a Dent feed into a lay-up, and Johnson stole the ball and sprinted for a lay-up. McDonald bombed in a 3-point basket then banked in a runner. Another driving lay-up by Lambeth kept West ahead 42-28 at halftime.
Dent sank four straight free throws in the third period then converted a McDonald pass into a lay-up. McDowell muscled in a bank shot then drove for another lay-in. Lambeth drove to the basket again for another lay-up and 58-43 lead at the quarter break.
“Will has been warranting more playing time with his play in practice,” said Knight Coach Travis Pait. “We have run into some adversity with injuries and other things, and our 3-headed monster has given us some big minutes.”
The ‘3-headed monster’ that Pait is talking about is his front-court reserve trio of McDowell, Russ and sophmore Jonathan Robinson.
Dent drove for another bank shot to begin the final quarter, and Lambeth grabbed a long rebound and sprinted ahead of the defense for a lay-up and a 62-43 lead.
McDowell muscled in a follow shot and totaled 6 points in the game. “Malique gives us some versatility on defense in that he can guard several positions,” noted Coach Pait.
Dent drove for another lay-up, and freshman Keshawn Lewis connected on a 3-point shot for a 71-48 West lead.
The final 3 minutes featured the Johnson highlight show. Robinson sent a pass to Johnson for a lay-up, and Johnson made 2 free throws.
With 2:41 left Johnson fell down with the ball. From a sitting position about 8 feet away he fired up a shot that banked in and brought a huge roar from the crowd. Before the roar could die-down, Johnson stole the ball and hammered in a dunk that sent the crowd roar to a louder level with a 78-52 lead.
“We have got to get better defensively,” said Coach Pait. “We have some big bodies, but we are capable of scoring the basketball particularly when a team is pressing us.”
The Knights improved to 5-1 with the victory and will battle old Waccamaw Conference rival Whiteville Monday night at 8:00 in the opening round of the Woodmen Life Christmas Tournament at West Bladen.
West Bladen (80) – Kalvin Page 1, Jimmy Williams 3, Keshawn Lewis 4, Michael Guyton, Stefan McDonald 15, Sayaun Dent 22, Malique McDowell 6, Shaquille Johnson 18, Jonathan Russ 2, Jonathan Robinson 1, Will Lambeth 8.
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