Rosewood-Parrott boys
By Rudy Coggins
Published in Sports on December 6, 2011 1:48 PM
There's still work to be done.
Rosewood head varsity boys' basketball coach Daniel Mitchell plans to deliver that message in practice today after a disastrous second-half effort against Arendell-Parrott Academy on Monday evening.
The Eagles converted just three second-half field goals in a 47-41, non-conference loss to the Patriots. The defeat snapped Rosewood's modest two-game win streak.
"The shooting woes continue," said an exasperated Mitchell. "I think we took some bad shots. We took some shots I didn't particularly like, but we had some open ones. We're struggling, especially against the zone on how to score, where to score, how to move (and) when to move there.
"It's one of those things we're going to have to work through."
Parrott (3-3 overall) did a better job of toiling through a ragged third quarter. The teams combined to miss their first 18 possessions and converted just 5 of 37 chances overall during the eight-minute stretch.
Rosewood, somehow, led 30-28.
Todd Bailey's 3-pointer gave the Patriots, of the Class 2-A independent school ranks, their first lead at 31-30. The uncontested outside shot in transition was part of a 10-2 run that ended on Evan Hill's old-fashioned three-point play with 5:26 remaining in regulation.
Hill led all scorers with 19 points, including 11 in the final period.
"I knew we would need to turn them over a little bit and get some easy baskets, and we did that in the first half," said Mitchell. "The second half, they were a little more patient, were able to handle the ball pressure a little more and got some easy looks.
"They shot the ball fairly well."
The Eagles (2-2) didn't allow the Patriots to build more than a four-point lead and closed the gap to a single possession on three different occasions. Josh Davis converted a steal into a layup, Jyonte Raynor scored inside and Dee Mabry put back in his own missed shot.
Parrott scrapped for loose balls and rebounds, and pulled away in the final minute. Nate Stasklunes' layup and Hill's two free throws sealed the road win.
Shane Whitley led the Eagles' offense with 11 points, including nine from behind the 3-point line. Joel Davis and Raynor finished with eight points apiece. Rosewood played without Zach Thornton, who suffered a sprained ankle against North Johnston.
"I think we missed Zach a little bit in the interior," said Mitchell. "That hurt us a little bit. There's work to do. We're going to put everything on them to go out and do it (each game)."