Wayne Country Day pulls away in fourth

By Ryan Hanchett
Published in Sports on November 16, 2011 1:48 PM

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Wayne Country Day got its basketball season off on the right foot with a 65-38 win over Wayne Christian on Tuesday night.

The Chargers battled turnovers and foul trouble for most of the game.

"It looked like the first game of the season," Wayne Country Day head coach Terry Jones said. "We certainly have a lot of things to fix going forward, but I was pleased with the effort tonight and obviously happy to start the year with a win."

Wayne Country Day used its defense to start a 7-0 game-opening run. During the four-minute stretch Wayne Christian attempted just one shot as turnovers dominated the landscape.

Wayne Christian bounced back in the second quarter as foul trouble relegated several Charger starters to the bench. Chase Darden scored six points in the period to keep the Eagles within striking distance at the intermission as they trailed 30-19.

"I thought we played pretty good defense in the second quarter and that allowed us to stay in the game," Wayne Christian head coach Franklin Brathwaite said. "A big key was getting back on defense. (Wayne Country Day) got a few fast-break points, but overall we did a good job of slowing them down."

The teams played an even third quarter before the Chargers finally asserted themselves. Brandon McCarter hit a 3-point basket to open the period and extend the lead to 43-30.

The Eagles didn't get any closer.

"Offensively it took some time tonight to get our feet under us," Jones said. "I thought the fourth quarter was more indicative of how we are capable of playing on that end."

McCarter paced Wayne Country Day with 18 points and 12 rebounds. Deshar Thomas added 12 points, seven assists and six rebounds in his first game since transferring from Spring Creek over the summer. Hil Tanner added nine points and Douglas Williams finished with eight points.

Darden led Wayne Christian with 16 points. Chris Easom added five points. Seth Slusher tallied four points and a team-high seven rebounds.

Wayne Christian (0-2 overall) entertains Wilson Christian on Nov. 21, while Wayne Country Day (1-0) visits Waccamaw on Nov. 22.