Three for three. Four would be the big score.
South Central topped visiting New Bern 66-53 in the Big Carolina Conference boys' basketball tournament championship Friday night. The Falcons’ title plaque is the third hardware item following a regular season crown and the Parker’s Barbecue Invitational.
Nice as they may be, none dare compare to the state championship quest that begins next week following Saturday’s state playoff seedings announcement.
“Oh, man. Yeah!” first-year Falcons head coach Leland Jones said. “We’re going to go back, work on some things, try to put our best foot forward, and go out there and make some noise.”
South Central completed back-to-back loop league tourney titles. This year the top-seeded Falcons (20-3) won by 11, 15 and 13 points against Calvin Campbell’s second-seeded Bears (17-10).
“Since the beginning of the season, I told the guys it’s going to take everybody together,” Jones said.
New Bern, down 18 before intermission, in the final period halved a 16-point deficit. South Central went for the jugular through the clock in the last three minutes. Seniors Ean Behm, Michael Bowens, Troy Loftin, junior Alcireon Phillips and sophomore Tobia Moye were a combined 7-for-10 at the foul line.
The Falcons led at the period breaks by 10, 18 and nine. At halftime they were only 11 points shy of their game total from one night earlier in a cold-shooting 52-45 semifinals win over Jacksonville. Two of South Central’s three total baskets in the third quarter were in the final minute.
“They went zone,” Jones said of the Bears’ choice from multiple defensive sets the Craven County guests often deploy. “They were able to trap us in the corners. I felt like we got a little tired, started being careless with the basketball.”
Loftin was a defensive catalyst throughout, his long-range touch lethal in the Falcons’ sizzling first half. Behm’s dunk and charge drawn less than five minutes in sparked a 19-5 welcome to the guests. He ignited the fourth period from long range and driving to the rim, thwarting the Bears’ formidable rally.
Behm scored 11 points, Bowens 10 and junior Da’vius Johnson eight. Falcons’ aim was true on four 3-pointers in the first quarter, seven in the first half and nine for the game. Seniors Behm, Bowens, Loftin, Brenden Jacobs and junior Kashmere Murphy shared them.
Bears’ senior Zymari Buck led all scorers with 21 points. Senior Brewer Simmons added nine.
“We work hard every day,” Jones said. “There’s no secret, no magic pill, no potion. We come in, we work, we sweat, we grind, and we go out here and try to put it on display.”
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