Clover rally falls short against Independence in finale of Border Classic basketball showcase
Independence senior forward Tosh Alberga led all scorers with 16 points as the Patriots held off a second-half Clover rally to win 51-47 in the finale of the 2023 Border Classic basketball showcase.
It looked like it was going to be another easy win for host Independence, carrying a 32-16 lead over Clover into halftime.
But the Blue Eagles came out of the break on fire, going on a 17-2 run, and went into the fourth quarter down 37-34.
The fourth quarter was much more evenly matched, with Independence using a more pressing defensive style to make Clover uncomfortable on the ball.
That allowed the Patriots to get some key stops and keep the momentum stalled for the Blue Eagles.
“We got off to a slow start, obviously,” Clover head coach Darris Jackson said. “We had to come back in halftime and regroup and refocus. Proud of the effort and the way we fought in the second half, but you don’t get moral victories or whatnot in this game. An L is an L, so we have to do a better job next time out of not having a slow start and being able to play harder from the beginning.”
Clover senior guard Hunter Decuir scored all of his team-leading 13 points in the second half.
Independence head coach Preston Davis gave credit to Clover for the comeback attempt.
He said a game like this was good to have early in the season because it forces the team to understand how and why to maintain its mentality for all four quarters.
“Our biggest thing is just consistency,” Davis said. “The good thing about Christmas break, these are non-conference games. So we’re trying to learn and trying to prepare to make a run in conference. We’re trying to win a conference championship. We just got to get better and iron out the little details and mistakes that we’re making.”
Independence climbed to 8-3 with the win and will play Fort Mill at 3 p.m. Dec. 28 at the 2023 Wolverine Holiday Classic. Clover fell to 3-6 and will play the Greenville Hurricanes at 7:30 p.m. Dec. 27 at the Bennie Bennett Memorial Tournament.
South Mecklenburg 67, Mill Creek (GA) 53
Anderson Skelton led all scorers with 19 points as South Mecklenburg continued its perfect start to the season with a 67-53 victory over Mill Creek.
The game trended exactly like the Sabres’ Thursday game against Clover.
South Mecklenburg trailed 13-11 at the end of the first quarter but exploded in the second, opening on a 17-2 run en route to a 35-24 lead at halftime.
Coming out of halftime, the Sabres opened with a 15-0 run thanks to five-straight three-pointers to increase its lead to 50-24 before salting away the victory.
“Coming out today, I was a little worried that we would come out a little flat,” South Mecklenburg head coach Chris McDonald said. “I wanted to change up the little things starting out the game because we had just played last night, and it was such a tough, physical game. But the guys turned around and answered the bell. We came out in the third quarter and really opened the game up. We hit five straight threes, and that got us going. And once they started going, it just snowballed from there, and the guys played great.”
The Sabres also got 17 points from Yariel Chudgar and 10 points from Peter Moye in what McDonald called “a total team effort.”
The win pushes South Mecklenburg to 10-0 heading into the Christmas holiday.
McDonald doesn’t want his team to get wrapped up in its overall record right now, but he also wants his guys to live in the moment and enjoy some time off.
“We have three games next week at North Iredell in the Christmas tournament to stay sharp before we go on to the second half of our season starting Jan. 6 at Richmond County,” McDonald said. “So we’ll come back. We’ll have to have three good days of practice to get ourselves refocused, but right now, it’s about recharging the battery, staying focused, staying sharp and just being prepared and ready to go for the long haul.”
The Sabres’ next game will be against Langtree Charter at 8:30 p.m. Dec. 28.
Science Hill (TN) 54, Fort Mill 42
Fort Mill never led in its 54-42 loss to Science Hill on Friday night.
The Yellow Jackets struggled to score, while the Hilltoppers were led by Oliver Peterson’s 23-point performance.
Christian McCain put up 11 points in the loss.
“We got beat from tip-off to the very end in every facet of the game,” Fort Mill head coach Myron Lowery said. “They were tougher. They made shots. They beat us in every facet of the game.”
Fort Mill stayed within single digits for most of the game and seemed on the cusp of making a run that would have given them the lead at multiple points in the game.
However, a missed shot here or a turnover there killed any momentum the Yellow Jackets were trying to build.
“We hoped defensively is where it starts and we’ll be able to force some turnovers and get some easy stuff off of that,” Lowery said. “We were not able to do that. And even when we got to our spots, we just missed a lot of shots that we should be able to make, that we practice every day. We scored 42 points, so we weren’t lighting it on fire.”
Fort Mill (6-5) heads into the Christmas break on a two-game losing streak after winning four of its previous five.
Lowery wants to see his team with a cleaner and a more composed style of play, as the season — and the opponents — get no easier after this.
“We still have to get better at handling the ball,” he said. “We want less than 12 turnovers. We’re not there yet. We’ve got to be a better free-throw shooting team. And then just make simple plays. We’re not asking for spectacular plays, just basic simple plays that we practice every day, simple shots. We got to get better because it doesn’t get any easier on our schedule.”
Other Day 2 Border Classic Scores
Hickory Ridge (NC) 79, East Ridge (TN) 49
West Cabarrus (NC) 65, Dreher (SC) 58
White Oak (NC) 55, Andrews (SC) 25
Panther Creek (NC) 58, Rockdale County (GA) 56
This story was originally published December 22, 2023 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Clover rally falls short against Independence in finale of Border Classic basketball showcase."