Eagles eliminated by Rocky Mount Prep
By Ryan Hanchett
Published in Sports on February 26, 2012 1:52 AM
Two long scoring runs were the difference as Rocky Mount Prep dispatched Rosewood 65-43 in the third round of the N.C. High School Athletic Association 1-A state playoffs on Saturday afternoon.
The game was originally scheduled for Friday night, but the threat of severe weather led to a postponement.
When the game finally tipped off the Jaguars looked like the more comfortable team. Rocky Mount Prep jumped ahead 16-4 over the first four minutes of the game. A pair of 3-pointers by Jacob Barrett did the most damage for the visitors.
Trailing 22-7 at the end of the first quarter, Rosewood regrouped in the second period as the teams traded baskets.
"Rocky Mount Prep is so fast and they put so much pressure on the ball that they actually speed the game up," Rosewood head coach Daniel Mitchell said. "There is no way to simulate that type of ball pressure at practice."
The Jaguars led 32-15 at the intermission before Rosewood came out with some improved defensive pressure of its own in the third quarter. The Eagles cut the deficit to 13 points on two occasions and had chances to get closer but a pair of open jump shots missed the mark and the visitors capitalized.
Rocky Mount Prep scored the final four points of the third quarter and the first eight points of the fourth to build a 25-point lead and basically put the game out of reach.
"I thought that our defensive effort was really pretty good," Mitchell said. "To hold a team that regularly scores 80-90 points to just 65 is a good job. We just had too many empty possessions on the offensive end."
Barrett led the Jaguars (23-5 overall) with 20 points. Donte Samuels added 16 points and nine rebounds in the win. Rocky Mount Prep advances to play West Columbus in the East Regional semifinals.
Jyonte Raynor paced Rosewood with 15 points. Zach Thornton added 11 points and eight rebounds. Joel Davis finished with 10 points.
Rosewood concluded the season 13-11 overall.