East Bladen Malaki Monroe(left) and West Bladen’s Tylik McCall.
Alex Brooks | Bladen Journal
BLADEN COUNTY-The ‘22-23 boys basketball season was an entertaining season with plenty of great games and performances to count. Reflecting on the boys season was tough with many great games to choose from so we’ll highlight the West Bladen and East Bladen matchups for part one. West Bladen and East Bladen were amongst the top teams in the SAC 7 conference last season to produce some memorable seasons. The county rivals split the regular season conference championship with one another and they also split their head-to-head matchup with a win a piece.
The Eagles hosted the first matchup of the season on their home floor for a back-and-forth contest that resulted in an East Bladen 52-44 victory. East Bladen guard Jacob Nixion dropped in some crucial buckets down the stretch of the first game to keep the Eagles on top of their rivals. West Bladen’s Jackson Pait performed well in his first season as a Knight and his shooting ability from range gave his squad another dimension to their game. He displayed his clutchness with a dagger three to put the Knights within three points of their rivals away from home after being down for much of the game.
The Knights tightened up on defense to force their rivals into turnovers but lack of experience cost them against a veteran team. East Bladen shrugged off their rivals’ body blows and found a way to secure the victory with the help of veteran’s Malcom Bolden, Yontee Dobson, and Zamar Lewis in the final moments. The next meeting between the two teams was just as intense but this time the Knights would topple their rivals in an overtime victory.
West Bladen center Chase Williams established his presence in the painted-area with some baskets in close to give the home team a slight lead in the first quarter. Bolden would take matters into his own hands with an array of offensive moves to keep the Eagles within striking distance of their opponents. The Knights were doing everything they could to hold onto their lead as the first half dragged on but Lewis was able to drop in the tying basket before the halftime buzzer.
Lewis became more involved in the third quarter of the game as the Eagles began to pound the interior for easy lay-in. Nixon and Bolden combined their offense together to take a 41-33 lead into the final quarter of regulation. Pait would go on and convert a three-and-one for the four point play to get the Knights with-in striking distance of their opponents and it got the home crowd off their feet.
The Eagles offense became more frantic as their opponents continued to close the gap down the final stretch of the fourth quarter. Pait drained his seventh three-pointer of the night to take the lead for the Knights with two minutes remaining and it appeared momentum had started to shift into their hands. The Knights missed a 1-in-1 opportunity at the free throw line that allowed the Eagles one more shot in regulation to tie the game.
Bolden did just that with a step-back three on the wing to help the Eagles tie the game at 52-52 and sent things to overtime. The Knights Hezekiah Adams was the player to step up for the Knights in overtime and his offense would contribute to early success in the overtime period. He had a chance to ice the game at the free throw line with seconds remaining but would miss both shots; fortunately for Adams his teammate Tylik McCall was the first to react to the missed shot and put in the game deciding basket at the buzzer.