BASKETBALL: WCDS boys fight past Terra Ceia

By Ben Coley
Published in Sports on November 13, 2016 9:40 AM

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Friday night's game between Wayne Country Day and Terra Ceia was an absolute slugfest -- literally.

Sharp elbows were thrown, bloody wounds were formed and angry fans were seething in the bleachers. In the first game of the season, the Chargers' emotional tolerance was already put to the test in a gritty 81-78 victory over the Knights.

WCDS head coach David Flowers said his team fell victim to the physicality and tense nature of the game in certain stretches.

"We get so focused on crowds and other things that aren't related to the game," Flowers said. "And that was our problem -- we got lost in that. We didn't stick to our game plan."

The Chargers entered the fourth quarter up by 10 points and poised to seal the game. But Terra Ceia scratched and clawed its way into contention.

Due to a variety of lapses and miscues by WCDS, the Knights used a 17-5 run to move ahead 71-69 with five minutes left in the game. It was Terra Ceia's first lead since the first period.

"We tried to spread the ball and attack, which we should've done all night long," Flowers said. "And we just didn't. We started settling for outside jump shots. Defensively, we didn't recover well. On the ball we were fine, but switching on ball screens -- we lost our man too many times."

As the game began to tighten, Flowers pleaded with his team -- especially Jamal King -- to attack the basket and make the defense work. King, showing an ability to be coached, aggressively soared to the basket and finished a thunderous dunk to tie the score at 74-all.

A couple of minutes later, King drove to the basket and nailed an acrobatic layup to give WCDS a 77-76 advantage. The crucial play proved to be the go-ahead basket.

"When someone squares up with him one-one-one, (King's) tough to hold," Flowers said. "And I guess he didn't realize that until almost too late in the game. He's kind of figuring out his position where he wants to be a shooting guard -- and that's what he needs to be."

King finished with a game-high 25 points, and also led the Chargers with seven rebounds. Marcus Metcalf poured in 21 and hit six 3-pointers in the first half. Jimmie Sanders and PJ Hill each recorded seven assists.

Even though the score was too close for Flowers' liking, he still believes in the game plan. He said it's something the team will have to closely stick to when formidable Neuse Christian visits next week.

"We come in on Monday, work and get ready for Neuse (Christian) on Tuesday," Flowers said. "We're not going to change anything that we do. We want to establish what our identity is and get going from there."