Alex Brooks | Bladen Journal

Alex Brooks | Bladen Journal

WEST BLADEN

BLADENBORO — The West Bladen Knights defeated the Fairmont Golden Tornadoes for a 66-35 victory on Friday night in a SAC 6 conference match-up. The Golden Tornadoes took an early 11-2 lead in the first quarter as the Knights were still searching for a rhythm on offense. West Bladen’s struggles didn’t last too long as they finally got going in the second quarter with junior guard Hezekiah Adams leaping through traffic with a two-point finish and he added another at the free throw line.

Fairmont failed to respond and their opponents took advantage by cutting their lead at the charity stripe after Knights forward Tylik McCall went 2-for-2 at the line. Momentum began to shift in the host favor as their offense began to click with each made basket and the Knights would snatch the lead after Chase Williams drained from the line to make the score 14-13. The Golden Tornadoes coldstreak in the second quarter finally came to an end with a quick response from senior guard Gabriel Washington for another lead change.

McCall was found camped in the corner before draining a three to snatch back the lead at 17-15. Washington answered right back as he fired in a jumper from the baseline to tie the game but the Knights would respond with a three-pointer from guard Andre Moore. The Golden Tornadoes failed to answer and the host made them pay with a 14-0 run in the final minutes of the first half.

Williams continued the Knights run to start the second half as he hit a shot from in close to extend the Knights lead to 33-17. Fairmont senior guard Issac McKellar scored on two straight possessions but the visitors were still behind by a margin of 12 points. The host barely flinched and Moore would drain another three-pointer to widen the gap between their opponents.

Jackson Pait hit from behind the arc and Williams punished his defenders down low as the third quarter was dominated by the host. The Knights also got some points off the bench from freshmen forward Kendall Lessane and junior forward Ty’Leak Ballard as they helped usher in a 51-29 lead into the final quarter of the night.

Williams led all scorers with 23 points and he finished the night with 8 rebounds to lead the Knights. Adams also had a solid night scoring the basketball with 13 points and McCall also finished in double-digit scoring with 11 points as the host secured their 13th straight victory. McKellar led the Golden Tornadoes in scoring with 13 points as the visitors suffered their first loss in SAC 6 play.

Fairmont fell to second place in the conference standings with the defeat on Friday and they will look to bounce back against Clinton this Tuesday for their next game. West Bladen moves to an overall record of 15-1 and they stay a perfect 4-0 in conference play. Next up for head coach Travis Pait and the Knights is a trip to Red Springs this Tuesday.

EAST BLADEN

TABOR CITY — The South Columbus Stallions defeated the East Bladen Eagles for a 54-47 victory in a Waccamaw Conference clash on Thursday night. Junior Andrew Todd and freshmen Khalil Morgan had 15 points apiece to account for the majority of the Stallions points on Thursday. Todd started the game hot with three baskets in the first quarter to take an early advantage in the opening stages of the game.

East Bladen senior Lee Barnes nailed a three-pointer and junior Dominick Collins added another bucket on the visitors opening possessions. South Columbus did enough in the opening minutes to take a 15-10 lead into the second quarter but the visitors refused to disappear. East Bladen sophomore forward Keyshawn Kemp launched a three-ball and nailed a shot from the interior for a positive start to the quarter.

South Columbus was able to fend off their surging opponents with Morgan draining a couple of three-pointers as each team traded points in a back-and-forth contest. The Stallions went into the intermission with a 24-21 lead and they started the third quarter with intensity. They quickly jumped ahead with Todd and Morgan hitting shots from distance during a 16-9 run at the beginning of the half.

The Eagles went into the final quarter of play down by 10 and they started the fourth quarter with aggression as Collins forced contact to get to the free throw line. Collins led all scorers with 18 points and he was able to force contact at the rim to go 8-for-9 at the charity stripe on the night. Barnes dropped a three-point basket in the fourth quarter but the visitors failed to run their opponents off the three-point line and it proved to be the difference down the stretch.

South Columbus leapfrogged the Eagles for third place in the conference standings as they moved to 4-2 in conference play. East Bladen’s overall record moves to 8-7 and they bump down to fourth place with a 3-3 record in Waccamaw Conference action. The Eagles travel away to East Columbus on Tuesday and they will host West Columbus this Wednesday for their first home game in two weeks.