PREP BASKETBALL: Southern Bank/Mount Olive Pickle Winter Classic tips off Tuesday

By Rudy Coggins
Published in Sports on December 26, 2016 9:59 AM

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MOUNT OLIVE -- Brain teaser time.

What does 384 minutes have in common with basketball?

Anyone?

Hint: Eight teams.

Still no answer?

OK.

Another hint: Four periods.

Still stumped?

Hmmm.

Well, here's the answer: the Southern Bank/Mount Olive Pickle Winter Classic.

The fourth annual three-day basketball affair tips off Tuesday afternoon inside Kornegay Arena on the University of Mount Olive campus. The Greater Neuse River Fellowship of Christian Athletes serves as the Classic host.

Parrott Academy and Southern Wayne launch the Classic with a 2:30 p.m. matchup. Spring Creek opposes Wayne Country Day at 4 p.m. First-year Classic participant Wayne Christian meets South Lenoir at 6 p.m.

Goldsboro, the Classic champ in 2013 and 2015, caps the first day with a 7:30 p.m. battle against county rival Rosewood.

Admisson is $10.

"We are very excited for the tournament," Spring Creek head coach Taylor Jones said. "They do an excellent job conducting the tournament, and our young men love the organization and how they put the boys first."

The Gators carry a 5-3 ledger into the holiday affair.

Jones has seen solid progress in practice on a daily basis, but said the team has room to grow.

SC has played an unselfish style of basketball this season and returns the core of last year's squad that has equaled its entire win total from the 2015-16 season.

The Gators average 54.9 points a game and allow 43.1.

The Chargers, third-place finishers in the Greenfield Christmas Classic, should present a challenge and provide a measuring stick for the Gators.

"We know that Wayne Country Day is extremely talented and very well coached," said Jones, who guided SC to the Carolina 1-A Conference regular-season championship in 2015.

"We will have to compete and play at a very high level against them in order to have a chance. They will extend and stress your defense. We have to play great defense, rebound well and push to share the ball in transition."

Wayne Country Day dropped four its first six games against teams expected to contend for independent state titles in their respective classifications in late February.

After running through that gauntlet of stern competition, the Chargers have reeled off seven wins in their last nine outings. The losses came against Charlotte Christian and Fayetteville Academy, two perennial powerhouses which are usually loaded with Division I rosters.

"Taylor does a great job with his guys every year," WCDS head coach David Flowers said. "They are going to play hard and compete at each level of the game. Our job is going to be to match their intensity and come out ready to play."

The Chargers are 4-1 all-time in two Classic appearances.

"Our goals are to just get better each game and play our best," said Flowers, whose top three players are future D-I recruit Jamal King, sharp-shooting Cole Atwood and Marcus Metcalf. The trio has combined to average 50 points a game this season.

"This tournament has no impact on our season or our main goal of winning a state championship. This is a chance for my guys to compete against guys they know and have fun playing a game they all love."

South Lenoir, of the Eastern Carolina 2-A Conference, placed fourth in the Classic a year ago. The Blue Devils are 7-3 and should be another good guage for Wayne Christian, which hasn't played since it handed Epiphany a 26-point loss on Dec. 16.

DJ Waters, Marteye Sembley and Darrian Oates have emerged as the Eagles' top players this season. Oates is capable of recording a double-double each time he steps onto the court.

Southern Wayne has found some momentum as of late, and could be the tournament darkhorse. The Saints come in 5-3 and have quality victories over New Bern and South Central in Eastern Carolina 3-A/4-A Conference play.

Rakilen Butler powers the SW offense and gets considerable assistance from speedster Bless Thomas.

Rosewood seeks to end a frustrating skid.

The Eagles let leads slip away against county foes Charles B. Aycock, Southern Wayne and conference opponent Hobbton.

"We have played several teams well and not closed out the in the fourth quarter," RHS head coach Daniel Mitchell said. "Goldsboro will be a tough challenge in the first round. We must cut down on our turnovers and rebound a little better.

"We hope the tournament is a good opportunity to improve and continue to get better over the holiday break."

Goldsboro (4-4) has dropped its last two outings -- 11-point defeats against Rocky Mount Prep and Eastern Wayne. Rosewood is the fourth different county opponent the Cougars will face this season.

"Our goals for the tournament are to get better every game and give yourself a chance to win," GHS head coach Russell Stephens said. "(To defend the title) we have to play hard every play and make sure we playing our style of basketball."

DJ Gaddis, Isaiah Cogdell, Jaryan Hargis and Ronnie Tookes have been Goldsboro's sparkplugs at different points this season. The Cougars can fill the bucket from the perimeter, but needs to find some consistency in the low post.