Cougars post ECC sweep

By Rudy Coggins
Published in Sports on December 5, 2004 2:01 AM

• Print
• Email

Goldsboro High's varsity basketball teams kept a pair of winning streaks intact at the expense of Class 3-A Eastern Carolina Conference foe West Craven on Friday evening.

The Cougar boys employed a smothering full-court zone press that created numerous offensive scoring possessions in a 91-70 victory. They remained unbeaten in four outings, including two against ECC opposition.

Meanwhile, Goldsboro's girls ran a "balanced floor" in their transition offense and hammered the Eagles 54-34 in a contest not as close as the final score indicates. The Cougars extended their ECC win streak to 18 games and evened their 2004-05 worksheet at 2-2.

Fatigue from playing three games in a five-day span surfaced throughout different parts of the boys game. Goldsboro missed some high-percentage shots, carelessly turned the ball over and West Craven capitalized for an early 13-8 lead.

"We did not play well," veteran Cougar coach Randy Jordan admitted. "The effort was very good. The intensity was good and I have no fault with that. We did not think well tonight. We were not a very smart basketball team with silly mistakes, silly turnovers."

The Cougars found a little offensive surge and pecked away at the minimal deficit. They eventually moved in front 17-16 with five minutes elapsed on the clock.

Using an aggressive full-court press that choked the Eagles' guards, Goldsboro widened its advantage to 29-20. Turnovers in the backcourt led to easy baskets, mainly uncontested layups from 6-foot-6 sophomore Daquan Joyner.

"Defense," Jordan said. "We got three or four turnovers in a row and capitalized on every one of them. We have zone traps that we use full-court and it put us in good position.

"Our kids did a great job of rotation, especially from the weak side. They didn't reach or gamble (but) anticipated and made the steal."

West Craven (0-4, 0-2 ECC) closed the gap to 29-28 before Joyner got loose for a crowd-rousing, one-handed dunk off De'onta Anderson's

assist. Anderson added two free throws and Joe Houpe benefited from second-chance opportunities to give the Cougars a 49-32 lead just before halftime.

The Eagles closed within 54-44 midway through the third quarter before the Cougars uncorked another run. Tavon Waters hit a 3-pointer off another Anderson assist -- one of seven on the night -- and Eric McLean followed with an old-fashioned three-point play.

Down 64-46, West Craven tried to stay within striking distance, but couldn't put together another run. Goldsboro scored six straight points in the final quarter and kept an 18- to 20-point lead the rest of the way.

"We've said it time and again, that's our style of play," Jordan said of the game-clinching run. "We want more runs and the (game's) last run. A win is a win and in this conference you take every win you can get.

"We needed that win, but we should not be happy with ourselves."

Joyner notched a double-double -- 17 points, 10 rebounds -- and blocked seven Eagle shots. Anderson nearly missed a triple-double, finishing with 15 points and 11 rebounds. Tim Kornegay provided 10 of his 15 points in the second half, while Houpe collected 14.

Goldsboro's girls emerged from the locker room all smiles after knocking West Craven (1-3) from the unbeaten ranks in ECC play. Head coach Gladys McClary had the biggest smile of all and applauded her team for keeping the floor "balanced" throughout the game.

"I couldn't have been more pleased," she said.

The Cougars rattled off a 13-0 run in the first period and played smart in transition. If the fast break wasn't available, junior point guard Chevoya Jackson efficiently ran the halfcourt offense and looked for either Ashelyn James or Jessica Faison in the paint.

James and Faison combined for 17 first-half points and nine rebounds.

West Craven managed just two field goals in a 12-minute span and fell behind by as many as 30 points. The Eagles outscored the Cougars in the final period, but the outcome had been decided at that point.

James ended the night with 18 points, nine rebounds, two blocked shots and two assists. Jackson provided 16 points and five steals. Faison added nine points, six rebounds and four assists.

Girls game

West Craven 11 2 2 19 -- 34

Goldsboro 20 13 11 10 -- 54

WEST CRAVEN (1-3, 0-2 ECC)

Chantale Rasberry 0 1 0-0 3, Brittney Colllins 0 0 0-0 0, Keshia Hardy 5 0 2-2 12, Joyce Freeman 1 3 0-0 11, Leslie Jones 1 0 0-1 2, Jalessa Jones 2 0 0-0 4, Lisa Witt 1 0 0-0 2, Shatyria Brown 0 0 -0 0, Shakira Morgan 0 0 0-0 0. TOTALS -- 10 4 2-3 34.

GOLDSBORO (2-2, 2-0)

Carmilla Early 1 0 0-0 2, Shevona Meadows 1 0 0-0 2, Chevoya Jackson 4 2 2-2 16, Helga Bryant 0 1 0-0 3, Mikeda Graham 2 0 0-2 4, Reneisha Graham 0 0 0-0 0, Jessica Faison 4 0 1-2 9, Ashleyn James 8 0 2-5 18. TOTALS -- 20 3 5-11 54.

Three-point goals -- West Craven 4 (Freeman 3, Rasberry), Goldsboro 3 (Jackson 2, Bryant). Total fouls -- West Craven 15, Goldsboro 7. Fouled out -- none. Technical fouls -- none.

Boys game

West Craven 18 16 14 22 -- 70

Goldsboro 29 20 16 26 -- 91

WEST CRAVEN (0-4, 0-2 ECC)

Leon Duff 1 0 0-0 2, Matt Cuthbertson 1 2 4-4 12, Nicheem Clarke 0 0 0-0 0, Tony Jones 5 0 4-6 14, Kelvin Spears 1 0 0-0 2, Dontae Stewart 0 0 2-2 2, Caleb Wetherington 1 0 0-0 2, Marques Moore 5 0 0-2 12, Jeremy Davis 7 0 1-6 15, Pierre Cox 4 0 3-3 11. TOTALS -- 25 2 14-23 70.

GOLDSBORO (4-0, 2-0)

Branden Herring 0 0 0-0 0, Eric McLean 1 0 1-1 3, Clifton Lawson 2 0 0-0 4, Tim Kornegay 4 1 4-5 15, Raheem Lofton 2 1 0-0 7, De'onta Anderson 5 0 5-6 15, Khayeef Marsh 1 0 0-0 2, Tavon Waters 0 2 0-0 6, Joe Houpe 7 0 0-4 14, Corey Thompson 0 0 0-2 0, Daquan Joyner 8 0 1-2 17, Ron Cannon 1 0 4-6 6, Adrian Collins 1 0 0-0 2. TOTALS -- 32 4 15-26 91.

Three-point goals -- West Craven 2 (Cuthbertson 2), Goldsboro 4 (Waters 2, Kornegay, Lofton). Turnovers -- West Craven 13, Goldsboro 18. Total fouls -- West Craven 19, Goldsboro 20. Fouled out -- none. Technical fouls -- none.