With wins, Northwestern boys and Rock Hill girls basketball set to chase region title
The Northwestern boys’ basketball team and the Rock Hill girls’ basketball team each took Region 3-5A wins on Tuesday night at Rock Hill High School — effectively putting each of them in a good position to contend for the region title.
The boy Trojans (17-4, 4-0 region), who defeated their crosstown rivals, 74-59, remain atop their region standings after handing Rock Hill (10-8, 2-2 region) its second region loss of the season. The game marked the halfway point in region play for Northwestern.
“We played three road games in the first half of the region schedule,” Northwestern head coach John Bramlett told The Herald after the game. “It is not going to get any easier when we play the second half.”
The girl Bearcats (15-6, 3-1 region), who won Tuesday night, 56-26, have only stumbled once in region play thus far — a six-point loss to the state’s top-ranked Clover last week.
“Getting a region win keeps us where we want to be,” Rock Hill girls’ basketball head coach Kenny Orr told The Herald postgame. “We also got some playing time for our reserves tonight. That will help us down the road.”
Here’s what you need to know about the games.
AJ Thompson leads Northwestern boys
Rock Hill controlled the tempo in the early going. Behind some outstanding play by Keshon Fletcher and Luke Bracey, the Bearcats took an 8-5 lead with 4:31 remaining in the opening period.
The Trojans regrouped and charged back. They put together a 10-0 run which resulted in a 15-8 advantage with 2:30 left in the opening quarter. Rock Hill answered, though — scoring the final five points in the session for a 15-all tie heading to the second quarter.
Northwestern led 20-17 with just more than six minutes remaining until halftime. They turned out a 13-1 spurt to take a 33-18 advantage with 2:57 to play until the half. AJ Thompson had a trey and a pair of free throws, Mason Grigg nailed a 12-footer and knocked down two free throws, and Qua Allison and Ger-Cari Caldwell each added a bucket in the run.
When intermission rolled around, the Trojans were ahead, 38-27.
The Bearcats worked the deficit down to 46-37 on a layup by Jordan McNeil with 3:39 showing on the third period clock, but they would get no closer: The Trojans then went on a 9-0 run for a 55-37 cushion with 37 seconds left in the third quarter. Allison and Thompson scored four points each in the rally. Northwestern led 55-39 when the final quarter began, and the two teams played on nearly even terms in the final eight minutes.
Thompson led the Trojans with 24 points. Allison followed with 18, and Grigg tossed in 11, while Caldwell chipped in nine. Donaven Brown, Josh Stradford, and Bracey led the ‘Cats with 12 points each. Fletcher and Shane Blakeney added nine points each.
“We got after it again tonight on defense,” Bramlett said. “We ran the floor well and distributed the ball.”
Despite the big win, the veteran Trojan coach was concerned about one thing.
“We had too many offensive possessions where we took a shot to quickly in the rotation,” added Bramlett. “That helped them get back into the game.”
‘A good region win’ for Bearcat girls’ team
The Bearcats claimed the girls’ game, 56-26.
The ‘Cats stormed out of the door and played outstanding on both ends of the floor in picking up the one-sided win.
After the Trojans (4-14, 0-4 region) scored the opening basket, Rock Hill scored the next 18 points. The Bearcats scored on the fast break and in the halfcourt. They turned steals into layups, and they turned up the pressure on the defensive end.
Mya Wise, Ju Ju Stringfellow and Jada Jones keyed the explosion by scoring five points each in the opening quarter. When the period was over, Rock Hill led, 20-6.
The ‘Cats continued the assault in the second period. They opened with a 10-0 run for a 30-6 advantage with 5:15 left in the first half. They added a 5-0 run before halftime for a 37-11 cushion heading to the locker room.
The third period was virtually even as Rock Hill substituted freely and had a 46-19 lead when it was over. The ‘Cats outscored Northwestern 10-7 in the final eight minutes to complete the victory.
Jones and Wise led Rock Hill with 12 points each. Stringfellow added 10 and Gracie Wilson chipped in eight. Darby Grigg paced the Trojans with 11, while Jada McMullen scored seven.
“We came out ready to play tonight,” Orr said. “We have a long week ahead of us with three games. This was a good start and a good region win over our cross-town rival.”
While Orr was pleased with the overall performance, he did not like the play of his team in the early going in the third quarter.
“We did not come out of the locker room with the same intensity that we had at the start of the game,” added Orr. “We eventually got back on track.”