Goldsboro boys capture Carolina 1-A tournament crown

By Ryan Hanchett
Published in Sports on February 20, 2010 11:06 PM

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CALYPSO -- Goldsboro didn't need a pep talk before Friday night's Carolina 1-A Conference tournament championship game against Ayden-Grifton.

Each player knew exactly what was on the line.

The Cougars played with purpose and defeated the Chargers 61-49 for the program's first conference tournament championship since 1993, and ninth overall since 1970.

"That is the beauty of having a team with senior leadership," Goldsboro head coach Patrick Reynell said. "I don't consider myself to be a great motivator, so it's a good thing when these guys can look at each other in warmups and be all-business."

The Cougars' offense started slowly as the second-seeded Chargers built a 15-14 lead after one quarter.

In the second eight-minute session, Rasean Brewington put the Cougars on his back. The senior forward tallied nine points, and a one-point deficit turned into an eight-point advantage at halftime.

Goldsboro led throughout the second half.

Trailing by 13 points midway through the fourth quarter, the Chargers tried to get back into contention as Monte Atkinson and Rondell Bell buried back-to-back 3-pointers.

Atkinson led the Chargers with 16 points and five rebounds.

Unphased, Brewington scored with driving layups on consecutive Cougar possessions to quell the potential rally. Brewington ended the night with 23 points and eight rebounds.

"Rasean stepped up and led this team tonight," said Reynell. "He was not hitting the jump shots so he decided to put his head down and went to the basket."

Demetrio Irby finished with 13 points and Devonte White added nine points.

Goldsboro (18-7 overall) has homecourt advantage throughout the N.C. High School Athletic Association sectional playoffs. The Cougars entertain wild-card selection Rocky Mount Prep on Monday at 7:30 p.m.

"We have a little momentum thanks to this tournament," said Reynell. "We didn't do anything spectacular, but we played two complete games and were very solid."