PILOT MOUNTAIN — The tide may be turning in what has historically been a one-sided rivalry between East Surry and Winston-Salem Prep.
In 25 meetings between Dec. 15, 2009 and Jan. 17, 2020, Winston-Salem Prep defeated East Surry 24 times. But, with Friday’s 45-38 comeback win, the Cardinals have now defeated Winston-Salem Prep in three of the last four meetings.
The exception in that time frame was the Phoenix’s win in the 2020 state playoffs. Prep then went on to the 1A State Championship.
East Surry trailed by double-digits early in the second quarter of Friday’s game. A big Cardinal run in the third quarter saw the game’s only lead change. The Cards (2-2) kept the lead alive by making clutch free throws down the stretch.
Prep’s intimidating zone defense limited East Surry’s scoring early on. Derek Sutterby and Tye Needham each scored in the paint in the first quarter, but everything else came from jump shots. The athletic Phoenix squad often instituted a half court trap and forced East to make wild passes.
Despite their stifling defense, the Phoenix struggled on the offensive end for most of the night. The exception here was when Prep when on a 10-0 run in the second quarter to take a 23-13 lead.
Even then, Prep’s defense is what created opportunities on the other end.
East Surry was held to just two free throws in the second quarter until Jordan Davis knocked down a 3-pointer with 2:07 left in the half. Luke Brown followed with a triple of his own as well as a put back to make it a one-score game.
The Cardinals momentum carried into the second half. After closing the second quarter on an 8-1 run, East Surry scored the first 10 points of the third quarter. Needham and Davis each hit a 3-pointer, Will Hiatt made the hustle play off a steal and converted the layup, and Needham made a pair of free throws.
East Surry was outsized in the first half, but the Cards countered with a zone defense of their own that made it more difficult for Prep to drive. The Phoenix tried to adapt by shooting jump shots, but struggled.
In the second half alone, Prep shot 2-for-12 from beyond the arc.
The Cardinal lead grew to 37-31 when Winston-Salem Prep knocked down a 3-pointer with 4:25 left in the game. However, the Phoenix couldn’t build momentum as a technical foul call derailed the attempted come back.
East players protected the ball in the closing minutes of the game and converted from the free throw line. The Cards secured the win by making eight free throws in the final 5:30.
EAST SURRY – 11, 10, 14, 10 – 45
WINSTON-SALEM PREP – 13, 11, 7, 7 – 38
ESHS scoring: Jordan Davis 15, Tye Needham 11, Derek Sutterby 9, Luke Brown 6, Will Hiatt 4
Next game: East Surry (2-2) travels to South Stokes (1-5) on Jan. 26
Source: https://www.mtairynews.com