DOBSON — North Surry secured the Foothills 2A Conference Championship Tuesday with a 66-59 win over Surry Central.
After trailing most of the second half, the Golden Eagles hit key perimeter shots to close the gap to just two points with 90 seconds left in the game. However, a near triple-double and 13 fourth-quarter points from Jahreece Lynch helped the Hounds hold on to a late lead.
On the same night he scored his 1,000th career point, Lynch tallied 18 points, 10 assists, nine rebounds and five steals for North Surry. The junior was held to just five points through three quarters, but picked up that slack with more than a dozen in the final eight minutes. This included going 9-for-10 (90%) from the free throw line in the fourth.
Free throw shooting was a difference maker in the seven-point game. North Surry entered the bonus with 1:11 left in the third quarter, while Surry Central’s first bonus free throw came with 1:32 left in the fourth. The visiting Hounds made 19-of-25 (76%) attempts at the line, and the Eagles went 7-for-11 (63%) overall and 2-for-5 (40%) in the fourth quarter.
Surry Central’s plan to slow the game worked efficiently in the first half. Playing against a team that averages nearly 75 points per game, Central led 28-27 at the midpoint.
The Golden Eagles operated out of the high post and only one field goal outside the paint in the first half. Josh Pardue had 11 of Central’s 28 first-half points – all coming either inside the paint or from the free throw line – while also assisting three other buckets in the low post.
Surry Central’s zone defense gave North Surry trouble by keeping the athletic Hounds from attacking the basket as much. This led to a scoring drought of more than three minutes in the second quarter, but 3-point shooting kept the Greyhounds in the game.
James McCreary, who scored a game-high 21, knocked down 4-of-8 (50%) 3-point attempts on Tuesday. Cam Taylor added two triples, and Makiyon Woodbury hit one as the Hounds shot 7-for-20 (35%) from the perimeter. North had five 2-point field goals and five 3-point field goals in the first half.
The Greyhounds found their way to the basket more in the second half while also ramping up their defense. Pardue scored his 13th point of the game with 4:47 left in the third quarter to put the Eagles up 32-30, but the Hounds responded with a 6-0 run.
Central started to shoot more from the perimeter in the second half due to North Surry’s 2-3 zone, but the Eagles wouldn’t hit a 3-point shot until the fourth quarter. Surry Central was 2-of-18 (11%) from deep through three quarters.
Ayden Wilmoth entered the game and knocked down a 3-pointer for Surry Central to begin the fourth quarter, but it was part of a 9-3 run by North. The Hounds then took their largest lead of the night at 52-41 with six minutes left to play.
Surry Central started to heat up from downtown with a Brady Edmonds 3-pointer. Avery Wilmoth got going with a drive to the bucket, then hit a 3-pointers of his own. Edmonds hit another 3-pointer and followed it up with a steal and layup to make it 58-55 with 2:17 to play. The lead was cut to two after an Avery Wilmoth free throw with 1:32 on the clock.
North came out of a timeout and put the ball in Lynch’s hands. He drew the double team and dished to Woodbury for a layup. Surry Central missed from deep on the other end, then Cam Taylor hit 1-of-2 bonus free throws to make it 61-56. Another empty Eagle possession allowed the Hounds’ Ryan Simmons to hit a bonus free throw.
Avery Wilmoth went to the line for bonus free throws with 15.9 seconds on the clock, but missed the front end of the 1-and-1. Lynch was quickly fouled and he hit both free throws to go up 64-56 before Avery hit another 3-pointer with 7.9 seconds to play. Lynch added his final two free throws with 5.7 seconds.
In addition to Lynch’s near triple-double, Taylor was close to a double-double with seven points and 11 rebounds. McCreary added four rebounds and a steal, and Woodbury had four assists, two steals and two rebounds.
Pardue and Dakota Mills combined for 18 of Surry Central’s 35 rebounds. Pardue nearly had a double-double with 15 points, nine rebounds and three blocks.
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North Surry defeated Wilkes Central 92-51 on Wednesday to improve to 16-4 overall and 11-0 in the FH2A Conference. The Greyhounds close the season vs. North Wilkes on Friday.
Surry Central came close to taking down one of the top-ranked 1A teams, Bishop McGuinness, in a non-conference game on Wednesday. However, the Eagles came up just short 78-74 to fall to 12-11 overall. The Golden Eagles are 5-6 in the conference and look to get back to .500 by hosting East Surry on Friday.
Scoring
North Surry – 15, 12, 16, 23 = 66
Surry Central – 10, 18, 10, 21 = 59
NS: James McCreary 21, Jahreece Lynch 18, Makiyon Woodbury 9, Cam Taylor 7, Ryan Simmons 5, Jackson Smith 4, Kolby Watson 2
SC: Brady Edmonds 16, Josh Pardue 15, Avery Wilmoth 9, Christian Robinson 5, Adam Hege 5, Ayden Wilmoth 5, Jacob Mitchell 4
Source: https://www.mtairynews.com