Warrior offense struggles down the stretch

By Rudy Coggins
Published in Sports on February 9, 2016 1:48 PM

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KINSTON -- Speedy and shifty Eastern Wayne point guard KK Best dribbled inside the free throw circle, drew a pair of defenders and kicked the ball out to Marcus Rouse in the corner.

Rouse heaved a 3-pointer, but didn't see it swish the net as a Kinston player knocked him to the floor. Rouse completed the rare four-point play, which pulled the Warriors to within 42-40 with six-plus minutes remaining in regulation.

Then EW went cold offensively.

The Warriors converted just one field goal -- a baseline dunk by Matthew Ray-Sutton off Best's assist -- during a 13-possession stretch. Kinston sealed the 56-45, non-conference outcome with stellar free throw shooting in the final two minutes.

"We got out of our offense a little bit and it hurt us down the stretch," Eastern Wayne head coach Chris Roberts said. "They scored a couple of fast-break points because we got away from our defense. We definitely got out of what we were doing in the first half that was helping us be successful."

EW and Kinston traded leads throughout the opening half and entered intermission deadlocked at 21-all. The Vikings led by four after three quarters and claimed their biggest lead, 42-36, on an offensive putback with 6:48 left in regulation.

Rouse answered with his four-point play.

"The Best kid, he's a tough player," Kinston head coach Perry Tyndall said. "You've got to be able to step in front of him and our rotations weren't good on him. That's something you've got to pay attention to because he's so good and can dictate the game, keep you off balance.

"You gamble and he's gone by you."

Kinston clamped down defensively, limited Eastern Wayne to one shot on the defensive end and scored 14 of the game's final 17 points. Damian Dunn and Anthony Berry Jr. tallied 15 and 12 points, respectively, for Kinston -- the four-time defending 2-A state champion.

Ray-Sutton emerged as the Warriors' top scorer with 11 points, followed by Rouse with 10. Yeonte Royall added six points. Ethan Molloy scored five, including a 3-pointer during EW's comeback surge.

"Some of the guys were a little bit worn down," said Roberts, whose team travels to Southern Wayne tonight and returns home Thursday for senior night against Charles B. Aycock.

"I told them you either bring it or you get it brought to you. The guys came out there and played for three quarters. We got out of our offense a little bit and that hurt us down the stretch."