High school basketball rewind: Fort Mill boys complete the sweep of Indian Land
Fort Mill turned in one of its best defensive games of the season Tuesday night, and it resulted in a region championship for the Yellow Jackets’ boys’ basketball team.
The Yellow Jackets held Indian Land to 41% field-goal shooting and forced the Warriors into several key turnovers in the second half, winning 52-44 and clinching the Region 3 5A championship.
The victory will help translate into one of the top seeds in the Class 5A/Division 2 playoffs that begin next Tuesday. The Yellow Jackets almost certainly will get a bye into the second round and won’t have to play until Feb. 21.
The victory also gave Fort Mill a season sweep over Indian Land, which brought a 7-0 road record to the Yellow Jackets’ gym Tuesday.
The Warriors (22-3, 9-2) led for much of the early going, but Fort Mill (23-2, 11-0) went on a 10-0 run that began just after the midway point of the second quarter. The Yellow Jackets led 24-20 at intermission and gradually built their lead through the second half.
Fort Mill’s margin grew to 4-30 with 7:25 left in the game on a Wallace Campbell 3-pointer.
The victory improved Fort Mill’s home record this season to 14-0, and the Yellow Jackets can add to that when they host Nation Ford in the regular-season finale Friday.
Freshman Jermier Nelson led the Yellow Jackets with 13 points, and three players — Campbell, Nas Berry and Logan Parker — added 11 apiece.
Mike Jones scored a game-high 19 points for Indian Land, which closes the regular season Friday at Northwestern. Jayden Williams added 10, and Sequel Patterson scored 10.
Here’s how other Rock Hill-area action went Monday and Tuesday:
TUESDAY
BOYS
Westminster Catawba 70, Freedom Christian 63: Catawba won its opener in the N.C. Independent Schools Athletic Association 2A playoffs and will travel to Wayne Country Day in the second round Thursday. Brycen Redmon scored 24 points and added six rebounds and five assists. M.J. Littlejohn scored 16 for the victors.
Lancaster 83, Camden 55: The Bruins moved to 11-0 in Region 3 4A, as Columbus Parker scored 17 points and hit 5-of-6 from 3-point range. Jordan Watford scored 13 points and added seven rebounds and six assists. Jacarey Ballard had 11 points, and R.J. Brown added 10.
Dreher 35, South Pointe 34: The Stallions dropped a road Region 3 4A contest, as Tre Raymon was held to six points by the Dreher defense. R.J. Pickering led the South Pointe offense with 11 points, and Jah Hall had 10 rebounds. Dreher finished 8-4 in the region, while South Pointe fell to 7-4 with one regular-season game left.
Clover 59, Nation Ford 47: The Blue Eagles clinched third place in Region 3 5A, improving to 6-5 in the region.
Rock Hill 72, Catawba Ridge 63 (2 OT): Isaiah Thomas (20 points) and Mark Caslaru (17) were a combined 14-of-23 from the floor, but the rest of the Catawba Ridge team shot 27 percent (11-of-40) and fell to the Bearcats. Rock Hill outscored Catawba Ridge 13-4 in the second overtime.
York 52, Richland Northeast 50: Christian Smith (16 points) and Peyton Lowery (10) led the Cougars to a come-from-behind Region 3 4A triumph. Richland Northeast led 38-32, entering the fourth quarter.
McBee 83, Riverwalk Academy 37: Austin Thurman scored 12 points and Braydon Dawkins added 11, but Riverwalk went down to defeat in this Region 2 1A game.
Ambassador Christian 73, Legion Collegiate 30: Ambassador Christian is a first-year private school from the Lake Norman area, and the Lions won for the 10th time in 11 games. They raced to a 14-2 lead and never looked back.
GIRLS
South Pointe 95, Dreher 15: The Stallions (25-0, 11-0 Region 3 4A) moved one win away from a perfect regular season with this rout. Five players scored in double figures, led by JaNyia Cunningham with 26. Serenity Woods added 20 points, making six 3-pointers. And Kaleigh Lucas had 19 points with 11 assists and eight steals.
Fort Mill 46, Indian Land 20: The Yellow Jackets held Indian Land to 27 percent field-goal shooting and cruised to a Region 3 5A victory. Zoe Williams scored 12 points, and Kate Marker added 11 for Fort Mill.
Clover 49, Nation Ford 19: The Blue Eagles’ defense was sharp again, lifting Clover (22-2, 11-0) to a one-sided Region 3 5A win.
Rock Hill 59, Catawba Ridge 43: Aubrey Stevenson scored 25 points and added seven assists, and Chloe Hudson had 10 points and nine rebounds in the Bearcats’ Region 3 5A triumph. Catawba Ridge led 11-8 after the first quarter.
Camden 85, Lancaster 47: KeMarja Peay scored 19 points and grabbed 11 rebounds for the Bruins in their Region 3 4A loss.
Legion Collegiate 60, Butler 54: The Lancers (21-13) scored perhaps their most impressive victory of the season, knocking off Charlotte-area power Butler (20-2). The Bulldogs led 24-21 at halftime, but Legion Collegiate outscored the Matthews team 17-10 in the third quarter and held on.
MONDAY
BOYS
Andrew Jackson 61, Pageland Central 59: Jy’Kevius Johnson scored on a tip-in with three seconds remaining, lifting Andrew Jackson to a road victory that clinched the Region 4 2A regular-season championship. The Volunteers (16-5, 11-0) had taken a 55-51 lead with one minute left, but the Eagles (16-9, 10-2) battled back to tie. Johnson finished with 18 points, and Bryce Peterson added 15. Tazhir Webber scored 16 for Central.
GIRLS
Andrew Jackson 82, Pageland Central 21: Tamia Watkins made 16 of her 24 field goal attempts, scoring 33 points, and the Volunteers (22-3, 11-0) cruised to a Region 4 2A victory. Watkins also had 14 rebounds and five steals.
WEDNESDAY
(Girls) Legion Collegiate (21-13) at Porter Ridge (16-6), 6 p.m. — Rock Hill-based Legion Collegiate makes its second appearance in as many nights in the Charlotte area. The Lancers, who play a tough independent schedule, will try to slow Porter Ridge’s standout sophomore, Ashanti Taylor, who is average 32.5 points a game.
Area scores
BOYS’ SCORES
MONDAY
Region 3 2A
Fairfield Central 62, Mid-Carolina 42
Region 4 2A
Andrew Jackson 61, Pageland Central 59
North Central 50, Chesterfield 34
York Prep 67, Buford 58
Region 2 1A
McBee 73, Lewisville 65
TUESDAY
Region 3 5A
Clover 59, Nation Ford 47
Fort Mill 52, Indian Land 44
Rock Hill 72, Catawba Ridge 63 (2 OT)
Region 3 4A
Dreher 35, South Pointe 34
Lancaster 83, Camden 55
York 52, Richland Northeast 50
GIRLS’ SCORES
MONDAY
Region 3 2A
Fairfield Central 53, Mid-Carolina 31
Region 4 2A
Andrew Jackson 82, Pageland Central 21
Chesterfield 41, North Central 20
Nonconference
Lee Central 63, Cheraw 30
TUESDAY
Region 3 5A
Clover 49, Indian Land 19
Fort Mill 46, Indian Land 20
Rock Hill 59, Catawba Ridge 43
Region 3 4A
Camden 85, Lancaster 47
Richland Northeast def. York
South Pointe 95, Dreher 15
Region 3 2A
Clinton 55, Mid-Carolina 22
Fairfield Central 60, Chester 22
Region 2 1A
C.A. Johnson 66, Governor’s School 7
Great Falls 23, Lamar 13
Nonconference
Legion Collegiate 60, Butler 54
Area schedule
WEDNESDAY
Region 3 4A
Camden at A.C. Flora
Region 4 2A
Buford at North Central
Cheraw at Andrew Jackson
York Prep at Pageland Central
Region 3 2A
Clinton at Fairfield Central
Region 2 1A
C.A. Johnson at Lee Central
Nonconference
Legion Collegiate at Porter Ridge (girls)
THURSDAY
Region 3 4A
Richland Northeast at South Pointe
York at Lancaster
Region 2 1A
Governor’s School at Lamar
Nonconference
Cuthbertson at Buford
FRIDAY
Region 3 5A
Catawba Ridge at Clover
Indian Land at Northwestern
Nation Ford at Fort Mill
Region 3 4A
A.C. Flora at Camden
Region 2 1A
C.A. Johnson at Midlands STEM (boys), 7 p.m.
Lamar at Lee Central
Lewisville at Great Falls
Riverwalk Academy at Governor’s School (boys), 6:30 p.m.
This story was originally published February 11, 2025 at 5:30 AM.