ELIZABETHTOWN-The East Bladen Eagles defeated the Pender Patriots for a 66-47 victory in a Waccamaw Conference clash last Friday night. The first quarter began with East Bladen junior center Keyshawn Kemp knocking down a shot from close range for the host first shot of the game. Pender attempted to respond from the interior but failed to get their shot to fall into the hoop. The Eagles quickly pushed down the floor for a missed shot of their own and they were able to regroup on defense to force a tough miss at the rim from Pender center Ryan Hall.
East Bladen’s momentary cold-streak continued as they failed to convert on two straight offensive possessions. The Patriots senior guard Demari Morgan tied the game at 2-2 with a successful drive to the basket. East Bladen sharpshooter Sherman Long swished a three-pointer from the corner after receiving a pass from Dominick Collins to put the host ahead once more. Both teams struggled with manufacturing offense with turnovers and missed shots sprinkled between possessions. Kemp was able to snatch an offensive rebound before being fouled on the way up to send him to the free throw line; he proceeded to hit both his free throws to extend the Eagles lead to 7-3.
The Patriots had multiple chances at their opponents basket but they continued to be ice-cold from the field. Kemp would eventually increase the lead with a dribble pull-up from the mid-range to extend the host lead to six. Pender’s Leon Williams caught a pass from a penetrating Morgan and he finished from in-close to finally get the visitors on the board. East Bladen suffered a series of turnovers but was able to hold firm on the defensive end.
The Eagles were active on the offensive board as well but failed to turn the second chance opportunities into points. Pender guard Jordan Hasley went 2-for-2 at the charity stripe to help get his team within two of their opponents. East Bladen got a spark of energy from their bench as Khalil McKoy dished a pass to Dashon Campbell from the interior to close the first quarter out at 11-7.
Pender began the next quarter with a turnover and their opponents drained a three-pointer from Long as the deficit grew. The Patriots failed to muster a response and suffered a second straight turnover to start the second quarter. East Bladen converted another three-pointer to make the score 17-7 as momentum seemed to be shifting into their favor. Hall made a move towards the baseline before finishing his lay-up over the fingertips of defenders to give the visitors their first bucket of the quarter.
The Eagles were able to turn defense into offense with Kemp pickpocketing his opponent to help wheel his team down the other side of the floor. They swung the ball around the wing until Kewone Maynor took matters into his own hands and drained a three-pointer to put the host ahead by 11. The visitors regrouped out of a timeout to find a much needed answer via sophomore guard Jaheim Lambe with a lay-up from six-feet.
East Bladen attempted another long-range effort from the perimeter but failed to nail down the shot. The Patriots took advantage of the missed shot with senior forward Malcom Driver maneuvering through the lane for the finish. East Bladen’s Chace Butler was able to get a lay-up to fall from in-close to make the score 22-13. The visitors tried to bulldoze their way inside but Kemp was waiting in the middle for the block shot to prevent the Patriots from scoring. Campbell gathered a missed shot from distance and he converted a tough shot with a defender over his back. He would proceed to extend the lead at the charity stripe to push the host ahead by 12.
The Eagles continued to play aggressive defense to force another turnover from their opponents and senior forward Shannon Hankins splashed a three-ball to make the score 28-13. Butler snatched a steal in the dying seconds of the first half and Hankins would eventually stretch the lead with another three-ball. The third quarter started off frantic and both teams suffered multiple turnovers in the opening few minutes.
Driver would get a lay-up to fall to get the Patriots on the board first to start the quarter but the visitors had plenty of work left to do in order to shrink the deficit. East Bladen attempted another three-pointer but the shot clanked off the rim to send them back towards the opposite direction. Hansley took advantage of the Patriots next possession by penetrating inside and finishing a floating attempt to give the visitors some hope. Collins provided an immediate answer for the host with a three-pointer to make the score 34-17.
Pender failed to convert a three-pointer of their own but was able to defend against a sprinting Eagles offense in transition. Kemp drained a free throw and converted inside on a pass from Maynor to help push the host ahead by 22. The visitors turned the ball over coming out of a timeout and the Eagles didn’t hesitate to add onto their suffering. Collins made a nifty move towards the basket to finish a lay-up over a couple of defenders to earn a 2-for-1 opportunity at the charity stripe.
The Patriots failed to find an immediate answer and Collins finished another bucket in transition as momentum began to fully swing in favor of the host. Kemp grabbed a steal a few moments later before going coast-to-coast for the lay-up and also earned himself a trip to the line; Kemp would go on to miss the free throw but Hankins would be able to gather the offensive board and finish at the rim to push the host lead to 46-17.
The Eagles were able to finish the third quarter ahead by 52-23 to give them enough breathing room going into the final quarter of the game. East Bladen’s overall record moves to 6-6 and they move to 2-1 in Waccamaw Conference play. The Eagles will host Heide Trask this Tuesday for their next conference match-up and they’ll travel to West Columbus this Friday for another conference clash.
EAST BLADEN ROSTER 24/25:
Dominick Collins SR.
Chace Butler SR.
Sherman Long SR.
Kewone Maynor SR.
Shane Harkins SR.
Keyshawn Kemp JR.
Dashon Campbell JR.
Tevin McClean JR.
Khalil McKoy JR.
Yoni Gonzalez JR.
AROUND THE WACCAMAW:
South Columbus(8-4, 2-1) 46, East Columbus(6-6, 2-0) 52
West Columbus(3-8, 0-2) 45, Whiteville(5-5, 2-0) 63
Aussie Travelers(0-2) 51, Heide Trask(5-8, 0-2) 61