Newberry picked up their ninth straight win after sweeping Mid-Carolina in season series

PROSPERITY, S.C. — Newberry(14-9, 7-0 region 2-AA) won their ninth straight game after beating rivals Mid-Carolina(8-12, 3-3 region 2-AA) on Friday evening. The Bulldogs earned a 72-39 road win over the Rebels.

Mid-Carolina’s gym was packed as fans filled the stands and sidelines to see part two of an old-age rivalry between the two schools that are only separated by just a little over 10 miles.

Newberry got off to a 7-0 run and found themselves leading 10-2 in the early part of the game. The home team battled back, but the Bulldogs still held a 13-8 lead at the end of the first quarter.

The visitors picked up their defensive pressure in the second quarter and built a double-digit lead. The Rebels would not go away easily and Jacob Clark put his squad on his back. Mid-Carolina’s big man knocked down two big three-pointers in the quarter, including one as time expired in the half. The Rebels still trailed 26-18 at halftime.

The Bulldogs started to build their lead in the third quarter behind the hot offense of sophomore guard Kenton Caldwell. He scored back-to-back buckets in the third quarter and knocked down a three-point buzzer beater to end the quarter.

The final period was much of the same and the Rebels started to wear down. They couldn’t find a rhythm on offense in the fourth quarter and had no legs. Their energy was down as they gave it all to complete their third game of the week and second of a back-to-back stretch.

“Hats off to Newberry. They are a really good defensive team and that’s what they do is wear people down. That’s what they did to us tonight. All the credit goes to them. They are well coached and really executed their gameplan well,” said Rebels head coach Kevin Winch.

Guards Ty Floyd and Kaden Myers were the only offensive spark for the Rebels in this game. Floyd finished with a team-high 11 points and Myers had six. Clark had a rough night, but knocked down made three long range shots from the three-point line to give him nine points.

Newberry outscored Mid-Carolina 27-8 in the final period to complete the season sweep. They also had four players finish in double figures. Caldwell had a game-high 18 points. Darius Elkins finished 13 points and were only a handful assists away from a double-double. The Bulldogs’ big men AJ Jeter and Jamel Howse Jr. combined for 24 points(12 each) and dominated the inside. It seemed like they grabbed every rebound and altered or block every shot.

“I keep preaching energy and effort. They are a great shooting basketball team, but I knew it was their third game of the week. They played Tuesday and played Ninety Six last night. So, I knew if we played four quarters then it was gone be tough for them to keep going,” said Bulldogs’ head coach Adonis Hill.

Though Newberry had a huge win, they still made a few mistakes. They got two technical fouls in the second half, including one for Howse hanging on the rim after a dunk attempt. Hill lost his mind on the sidelines and reminded his young stud that mistakes like that one can get you sent home in the playoffs.

“I told those goings at the start of the fourth quarter, ‘we got to start growing!’ We didn’t close out Saluda like we should have and didn’t close out Ninety Six. We made those bonehead plays but finally at the end we closed one out,” Hill stated.

Newberry will close out their season on the road on Feb.8 against Abbeville. As for the Rebels, they are finally healthy and will have a chance to get more chemistry with two games next week against Abbeville at home on Feb.6 and the season finale on the road at Saluda on Feb.8.

“I feel really good about our team and what we’ve been able to accomplish. I know tonight is a little setback but our focus is on the next one. We got Abbeville coming up next week and I think it’s a team we can beat if we play well,” said Winch. “We got them in this building [home game], which is a good thing for us. We will get it back right and keep our heads because we have goals behind tonight.”