Spring Creek boys dump Hobbton

By Allen Etzler
Published in Sports on December 19, 2014 1:48 PM

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aetzler@newsargus.com

SEVEN SPRINGS -- Since returning from a shoulder injury early in the season, Spring Creek's Jordan Hicks has been a double-double machine for the Gators.

The scary thing is, he's not even back in shape yet.

And if he hits free throws like he did Thursday night he'll become one of the best players in the Carolina 1-A Conference.

Hicks scored 13 points, grabbed 17 rebounds and made all of his free throws as Spring Creek dominated Hobbton 85-50 for its sixth straight win and moved to 2-0 in Carolina 1-A conference play.

Hicks did all of his damage in barely three quarters of play. He fouled out with seven minutes left in the final frame.

"He's playing like three minutes straight and you can tell he's huffing and puffing," Spring Creek coach Taylor Jones said. "Once we get him back in shape, hopefully come January in the middle of conference play, he's going to be exciting to watch."

The Gators (7-2 overall) started slow for the first time all year, after coming into the game not knowing much about Hobbton. They turned the ball over on the first three possessions before senior guard Trey Hammonds settled the game down and took over.

The Gators finished the quarter up by three before outscoring the Wildcats 28-13 in the second quarter.

"We kind of started slow because we had to get a feel for the game and what they were going to do," Hicks said. "Once we did that we were able to open it up."

The Gators switched up defensive looks and forced the Wildcats into turnovers.

"You have to be able to throw a bunch of different looks at a team when you don't know what they're going to be doing," Jones said. "We did that a lot in the second quarter."

Hammonds filled up the stat column again with 11 points, seven assists, seven steals and six rebounds. Backcourt mate Brandon Gonzalez, who has spent the week recovering from the flu, added 13 points. Despite being under the weather, Gonzalez would have played the entire game if he had his way.

"That's called being a senior," Jones said. "I mean, why wouldn't you want to be out there playing? These guys all want to be out there at all times."

Gonzalez got the Gators going in the second half, knocking down a three early. Spring Creek punished the Wildcats on the offensive glass and scored 32 second-chance points.

Neither the players nor Jones are satisfied and realize they have much more work to do before next Friday's clash with North Lenoir next Friday in the second annual Southern Bank/Mount Olive Pickle Classic.

"Coach never lets us get comfortable," Hicks said. There's always something for us to work on."