Flyers Start Fast Against Cougars on the Way to Win No. 12 in a Row
In a tale of two halves, the Sandhills Community College basketball team built a 25-point first-half lead against Central Carolina CC and then held on to grab a 104-89 Region 10 win on Wednesday evening at The Hangar.
With memories of a one-point escape with a victory in Sanford two weeks ago still fresh on their minds, the Flyers scored the first 15 points of the game and extended their lead to 20-2 with 12 minutes remaining in the first half.
They extended the advantage to 50-25 at halftime before turning back a Cougar rally that reduced the margin to nine points with just over two minutes remaining in the game.
"I was really pleased with our first half," Flyers Head Coach Mike Apple said. "We closed out consistently on their shots and our rebounding was lights out.
"We lost our intensity early in the second half and then they started turning us over. We bent and bent, but luckily we didn't completely break. We have a lot to work on."
The No. 12 ranked in Division III Flyers improved to 8-0 in Region 10 and 22-6 overall with their 12th win in a row. The Cougars dropped to 12-12 and 6-3.
The Flyers close out the regular season with a 1 p.m. conference game against Dabney S. Lancaster CC (0-8, Region 10) on Saturday, followed by a non-conference game against Combine Academy at 6 p.m. next Tuesday.
The first of four treys in the game by K.J. Perry, followed by a steal by the freshman that led to a transition basket by Joey McMullin, helped stake the home team to the 15-0 lead.
A swarming defense limited the Cougars to just six baskets on 32 attempts in the first half.
Zac Sledge, a 6-foot-9 sophomore, helped set the tone with rim protection and rebounding against a team that did considerable damage inside against the Flyers during the game in Sanford.
"Coming into the game, I remembered what they did to us in the last game and I wasn't going to let it happen in this one," the product of Southwest Edgecombe High School said. "That gave me a little motivation to play harder."
The two teams traded baskets for most of the first 10 minutes after the intermission before sloppy ball-handling by the Flyers helped the Cougars close the gap.
Playing again without several of the primary ball-handlers they began the season with, the Flyers committed the majority of their 31 turnovers in the game in the second half.
"Sometimes it's hard to play with a big lead," Apple said. "I'm sure Coach (Brad) McDougald would tell you they played poorly in the first half. We played pretty well and then it was time for the roles to be reversed.
"We obviously had a hard time with their pressure in the second half."
Leading 93-75 with just over five minutes remaining in the game, a basket by the Cougars' Montell Moore sparked an 11-2 run that closed the gap to 95-86. Then a three by Perry was countered with one by the Cougars' Derek Gardner before the Flyers closed it out by scoring the final six points of the game at the charity stripe.
The Flyers were led in scoring by McMullin with 18 points and Perry with 17, including the four treys in five attempts.
Bryan Quiller contributed 15 points, 11 rebounds and blocked four shots. Darryl McCaster and Chris Hunter added 13 points apiece. Gardner led the visitors with 22 followed by Moore and Matthew Harbour with 18 each.
The Flyers enjoyed a 66-28 edge in total rebounds.
Sledge finished with eight points and tied his college career-high with 13 boards. His all-around effort also included three blocks, two assists and a steal. His coach told him he thought this was his best game as a Flyer.
"Zac was in the ballgame from the beginning to the end," Apple said. "His shot blocking was a big deal in the first half."
Central Carolina - Moore 6 6-11 18, Mason 2 2-2 6, McLaurin 2 8-8 12, Gardner 8 5-6 22, Waldeck 0 0-0 0, Bell 2 0-0 4, Case 1 2-4 4, Miles 0 0-0 0, Harbour 6 1-2 18, Watson 2 0-0 5, Moore 0 0-0 0, Thiam 0 0-0 0. Totals 29 24-33 89. Sandhills – Wooldridge 3 0-0 7, Hunter 4 5-6 13, McCaster 4 5-6 13, Sledge 2 4-5 8, Quiller 5 5-8 15, Perry 5 3-4 17, Hanani 0 5-9 5, Coleman 0 1-2 1, McMullin 8 2-2 18, Zachary 1 3-4 5, Nelson 1 0-0 2 Totals 33 33-46 104. Three-point goals: CCCC 7 (Harbour 5, Gardner, Watson); SCC 5 (Perry 4, Wooldridge).
