High school basketball rewind: No. 3 Fort Mill edges No. 2 Indian Land in top SC boys’ game
Fort Mill emerged victorious in a battle of Upstate South Carolina powers.
Junior forward Wallace Campbell made the second of his two free throw attempts during the final seconds of the Yellow Jackets’ 53-52 Region 3 5A victory against Indian Land on Friday night in Lancaster County.
Warriors star point guard Mike Jones knocked down several clutch shots to close the gap throughout the evening, including a game-tying 3-pointer as Indian Land clawed back late. Fort Mill gained possession with five seconds left and lobbed the ball to Wallace, who was fouled with 1.3 seconds left.
“What I told them pregame is: ‘We’re tired of playing with people. We have to beat good teams,’” Fort Mill head coach Myron Lowery said. “To come in here, LJ (Johnson) was my former assistant. He does a fabulous job, he’s done an unbelievable job at Indian Land.
“Beating a really, really good team like them is just a great thing for Fort Mill basketball.”
It was close throughout the night, but the Yellow Jackets (16-2, 5-0 Region 3 5A) were a step ahead early. Fort Mill held an eight-point halftime advantage and led for most of the third quarter, before Jones helped put his team in a good position to steal a win at home.
Big shots from Jones and big man Jayden Williams tied the game at 62 late for Indian Land (16-2, 4-1), whose largest deficit was single digits.
The Warriors had a last-chance effort following Wallace’s free throw, sending a strong pass down low with 1.3 seconds remaining. The feed went out of bounds, and officials put eight tenths of a second back on the clock — but Sequel Patterson couldn’t nail the put-back in time.
“Coach (Myron) Lowery is the guy who gave me my first head coaching job, so we always have good battles,” said Johnson, the Indian Land head coach who worked under Lowery at Butler High in Matthews. “We scheme against each other a lot. We know each others’ ins and outs. It was a good chess match, it just came down to the more disciplined team winning.
“They hit free throws, 3-pointers and won the turnover battle. Games like this usually come down to who turns the ball over the least, and who hits more free throws. They did both of those.”
In other games Friday night:
BOYS
Andrew Jackson 80, Pageland Central 69: The host Eagles led 18-13 after one quarter, but Andrew Jackson roared back and scored a Region 4 2A victory. Bryce Peterson scored 25 points, hitting 3-of-5 from 3-point range, and Damias Seegars scored 18.
Catawba Ridge 56, Rock Hill 50: Junior wing Kevin Butler scored 13 points in his first game in a year, and the Copperheads notched a Region 3 5A victory. Butler had been sidelined by an injury since last season.
Lancaster 93, Camden 57: The visiting Bruins manhandled the Bulldogs in this Region 3 4A game, as Jordan Watford scored a team-high 21 points. The victory lifted Lancaster to 13-1 overall and 4-0 in the region. Lancaster hosts Dreher on Wednesday in a first-place showdown.
South Pointe 47, Dreher 32: Tre Raymon scored 12 first-half points, helping the Stallions build a 22-15 intermission lead, and South Point pulled away in the second half for a Region 3 4A triumph.
York 56, Richland Northeast 43: York built a 27-13 halftime lead and coasted to its second straight Region 3 4A triumph. Peyton Lowery led York with 15 points, Christian Smith added 13, and Malikai Dawkins had 10 points and 13 rebounds.
GIRLS
Fort Mill 48, Indian Land 34: The visiting Yellow Jackets improved to 4-1 in Region 3 5A.
Richland Northeast 68, York 23: York scored the first two points in this Region 3 4A game, but Richland Northeast went on a 14-0 run and pulled away.
Rock Hill 43, Catawba Ridge 21: The Bearcats outscored the Copperheads 29-10 in the second quarter and rolled to a Region 3 5A triumph. Aubrey Stevenson scored eight points in Rock Hill’s second-quarter surge.
Here is a preview of Saturday’s games, along with a schedule of the weekend’s action:
(boys, girls) Craze.Sports MLK Classic, at Indian Land, begins at 10 a.m. — Eight games are on the schedule for this event, including appearances by the girls’ teams from Indian Land and Lancaster. Several Charlotte-area powers also are playing, highlighted by the 8:30 p.m. finale between Victory Christian and Gaston Christian.
(girls) Andrew Jackson (15-2) vs. Mount Paran (GA) Christian (16-2), in MLK Showcase at Kennesaw, GA, 3:30 p.m. — Coach Steven Fair takes his Volunteers team to the Atlanta area for a meeting with one of Georgia’s top private school teams. Tania Watkins (25.2 ppg) is among South Carolina’s leading girls’ basketball scorers. Mount Paran Christian loves to run, and the Eagles have scored more than 70 points in six games.
(girls) South Pointe (16-0) vs. Ridge View (9-6), in MLK Showcase at Dreher, 5:30 p.m. — Ridge View typically is among the state’s powers, although the Blazers have hit a few rough patches this season. Center Anasia Harvey (16.3 ppg, 10.7 rpg) is the team’s leading. South Point will be playing its third game of the week.
Scores, schedule
FRIDAY
BOYS
Region 3 5A
Catawba Ridge 56, Rock Hill 50
Clover 59, Nation Ford 43
Fort Mill 53, Indian Land 52
Region 3 4A
Lancaster 93, Camden 57
South Pointe 47, Dreher 32
York 56, Richland Northeast 43
Region 3 2A
Chester at Clinton
Fairfield Central 46, Columbia 42
Mid-Carolina 38, Eau Claire 36
Region 4 2A
Andrew Jackson 80, Pageland Central 69
Chesterfield at North Central
Region 2 1A
Governor’s School at Lewisville
Lamar 84, Midlands STEM 50
McBee 61, Lee Central 49
Riverwalk Academy at C.A. Johnson
Metrolina Athletic Conference
Concord Academy 68, Gaston Christian 54
Gaston Day 67, Hickory Grove Christian 63
Nonconference
Greenville Classical at Lake Pointe Academy
GIRLS
Region 3 5A
Clover 64, Nation Ford 30
Fort Mill 48, Indian Land 31
Rock Hill 43, Catawba Ridge 21
Region 3 4A
Camden 93, Lancaster 47
Richland Northeast 68, York 23
South Pointe 92, Dreher 23
Region 3 2A
Clinton 36, Chester 19
Columbia at Fairfield Central
Eau Claire 46, Mid-Carolina 41
Region 4 2A
Chesterfield at North Central
Pageland Central at Andrew Jackson
Region 2 1A
Governor’s School at Lewisville
Lee Central at McBee
Metrolina Athletic Conference
Concord Academy 62, Gaston Christian 34
Hickory Grove Christian 29, Gaston Day 25
Nonconference
Greenville Classical at Lake Pointe Academy
SATURDAY
Craze.Sports MLK Classic
(at Indian Land High)
(girls) Garinger vs. Indian Land, 10 a.m.
(girls) Charlotte Country Day vs. Mountain View Prep (SC), 11:30 a.m.
(girls) Providence Day vs. Darlington (SC), 1 p.m.
(girls) Hough vs. River Bluff (SC), 2:30 p.m.
(girls) Butler vs. Lancaster, 4 p.m.
(boys) Northside Christian vs. South Charlotte Thunder, 5:30 p.m.
(boys) Carolina International School vs. Mountain View Prep (SC), 7 p.m.
(boys) Victory Christian vs. Gaston Christian, 8:30 p.m.
MLK Peace Showcase
(at West Charlotte)
(boys) York Prep vs. Bradford Prep, 11 a.m.
(boys) Harding vs. Queen City Prep, 12:30 p.m.
(girls) Olympic vs. Morrow (GA), 2 p.m.
(boys) Ambassador Christian vs. Morrow (GA), 3:30 p.m.
(girls) West Charlotte vs. Seventy-First, 5 p.m.
(boys) West Charlotte vs. Seventy-First, 6:30 p.m.
(boys) Queen’s Grant Charter vs. Indian Land, 8 p.m.
Nonconference
Andrew Jackson vs. Mount Paron Christian (GA) (girls), 5 p.m., in Kennesaw (GA) MLK Classic
Nation Ford vs. Sugar Creek Charter (boys), in Hoopsville MLK Classic at Chambers, 4:30 p.m.
Rock Hill vs. Savannah (GA) Jenkins (girls), in Savannah MLK Showcase, 5 p.m.
South Pointe vs. Ridge View (girls), in Dreher MLK Showcase, 5:30 p.m.
SUNDAY
Nonconference
Legion Collegiate at Legacy Charter (girls)
This story was originally published January 17, 2025 at 5:00 AM.