Southern Wayne sweeps Aycock in ECC play

By Rudy Coggins
Published in Sports on January 27, 2008 2:02 AM

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PIKEVILLE -- Although 32 minutes of consistent play didn't seem to be the theme Friday evening, Southern Wayne's basketball teams needed just one quarter to knock out county rival Charles B. Aycock.

James Jones ignited a second-quarter surge with back-to-back 3-pointers as the Saints prevailed 69-41 in the boys' contest. After an 0-6 start, Southern Wayne improved to 7-11 overall and 3-1 in Class 3-A Eastern Carolina Conference play.

Kayla Powell collected a double-double -- 11 points, 10 rebounds -- as the Saints claimed a 56-43 decision over the Golden Falcon girls. Shakoria Clark delivered a season-high 11 assists for Southern Wayne, which departed 10-7 overall and evened its ECC ledger at 2-2.

Aycock's boys trailed 13-9 after one period of play.

"I thought the first quarter we played pretty even basketball," said Golden Falcons coach David West. "I thought our intensity level was pretty high. The second quarter, they just picked up steam and we just lost our poise.

"It was definitely the deciding factor in the ball game."

Crouched on the sidelines, West watched in dismay as Southern Wayne turned Aycock turnovers into transition baskets. The Saints picked the Golden Falcons for 31 steals.

Jones swished a pair of 3-pointers to fuel a 23-6, second-quarter outburst by the Saints. Justin Artis, Johnathan Hart, Desmond Raiford and J. Hill also got into the scoring act during the run.

"We got a lot of points off our defense," said Saints coach Russell Stephens. "We hit some big outside shots (in the second quarter). Jones isn't a true 3-point shooter, but he was open and able to knock it down.

Southern Wayne led 36-15 at halftime, but watched Aycock whittle the deficit to 14 points midway through the third period. The Saints converted four consecutive possessions and owned a 49-31 advantage after three periods.

"We wanted to go quarter by quarter and possession by possession, because you have to against these guys," said West. "After the first quarter, they got us completely out of it."

Hart, Artis and Kendrick Thompson led five Saints in double figures with 11 points apiece. Jones and Hill each supplied 10 points. Khendra Reid emerged the Golden Falcons' top scorer with 11 points, while Jordan Riley contributed eight.

Defense proved crucial in the girls' game.

Leading 27-20 at halftime, the Saints employed a 1-2-2 full-court trapping scheme that rattled the Golden Falcons. The margin gradually grew as Octavia Lee, Clark and Powell scored baskets in a 19-point, third-quarter uprising.

Lee and Brianna Lofton finished with 11 points apiece.

"We ran our press and our girls played a lot better right there in the third quarter ... got some turnovers and easy baskets," said Southern Wayne coach Ricky Lofton. "The first half we didn't play that good, but played better defense in the second half. That was the turning point of the game, I believe."

Chantel Gaines poured in a game-high 24 points for Aycock, which committed 16 first-half turnovers. The Golden Falcons trailed 22-20 late in the second quarter, but were down 51-31 just 12 minutes later.

Aycock coach Carrie Reynell couldn't fault her team's effort, but added turnovers against the press definitely factored into the overall outcome.

"Several of our turnovers were unforced ... just didn't take care of the ball and that ended up hurting us in the end," said Reynell. "In basketball, you try to limit the other team's spurts and lengthen yours, but we didn't do what we needed to (tonight)."

Boys game

Southern Wayne 13 23 13 20 -- 69

C.B. Aycock 9 6 16 10 -- 41

SOUTHERN WAYNE (7-11, 3-1)

Justin Artis 4 0 3-3 11, James Jones 2 1 2-2 9, J. Hill 5 0 0-0 10, Rashadd Hill 3 0 0-1 6, Dwight Smith 1 0 0-0 2, Kendrick Thompson 5 0 1-1 11, Johnathan Hart 3 0 5-6 11, Desmond Raiford 3 0 2-4 8. TOTALS -- 25 2 13-17 69.

C.B. AYCOCK (3-15, 1-3)

David Gurganus 0 0 0-0 0, Isaac Ryals 0 0 0-0 0, Tyheim Pitt 0 0 0-0 0, Dominique Young 0 0 0-0 0, Devon Newsome 1 0 1-2 3, Jordan Riley 4 0 0-0 8, Jon Williams 1 0 0-0 2, Daniel Lane 0 0 0-0 0, Kyle LaFlamme 1 0 3-5 5, Khendra Reid 5 0 1-4 11, Jordan Yawn 0 0 0-0 0, Mike King 1 0 0-0 2, Bobby Artis 1 0 1-2 3, Andre Bryant 2 0 3-4 7. TOTALS -- 16 0 9-17 41.

Girls game

Southern Wayne 11 16 19 10 -- 56

C.B. Aycock 12 8 11 12 -- 43

SOUTHERN WAYNE (10-7, 2-2)

Kanesha Jones 1 0 0-0 2, Shakoria Clark 1 1 0-0 5, Octavia Lee 4 1 0-0 11, Brianna Lofton 2 0 7-8 11, Cassandra Jones 1 0 0-0 2, Carlotta Hagans 0 0 0-0 0, Lynnesha Leonard 1 2 1-3 8, Kayla Powell 5 0 1-2 11, Clarice Sherard 2 0 1-4 5. TOTALS -- 17 4 10-17 56.

C.B. AYCOCK (2-16, 1-3)

Yolanda Pitt 2 1 1-6 8, Artice Felder 0 0 0-0 0, Paige Garrett 0 0 0-0 0, Kendra Speight 0 0 0-0 0, Chantel Gaines 10 0 4-6 24, Stephanie Orosco 1 0 0-1 2, Tori Benton 2 0 3-6 7, Briana Reid 1 0 0-0 2. TOTALS -- 16 1 8-19 43.