Undefeated Charlottesville throttles New Kent in non-district affair

New Kent’s Ethan Smith (22) forces Charlottesville’s Aidan Yates (12) and Luka Matic (55) to play defense as he splits the double team.

Robb Johnson photo

A rare home game during the Winter Break allowed the opportunity for New Kent’s Trojans to take on an unfamiliar foe in the visiting Charlottesville Black Knights. And while the hosts hung in for a half against the visitors, it was Charlottesville’s one-two combination of Luka Matic and Aidan Yates who outworked the Trojans.

The Charlottesville duo scored 57 combined points as the Black Knights toppled New Kent 81-60 in the non-district battle Friday night.

Out the game, the duo imposed their presence as they combined for the first 11 points again. Yates added two three pointers to the as Charlottesville raced out to 18 points in the opening frame.

New Kent didn’t back down, countering with a scoring output from Kyle Diggs. Diggs seven points along with three-pointers from Will Ross and Jordan Carr resulted in the hosts leading by four (22-18) to end the first quarter.

New Kent stretched their lead out to six (26-20) before the Black Knights began pressuring the Trojans. The turnovers resulted in Charlottesville’s Nasir Sumpter draining two three-pointers to tie the game up. Moments later, Yates basket would give the visitors a lead. That lead maintained into the halftime break as New Kent trialed 38-34.

In the second half, New Kent had to navigate the offense without leading scorer Ross, who went down with an injury. The result saw Matic score half of his team’s 24 points in the frame, whereas New Kent only contributed 10 as a team. From there, a 16-2 run to start the fourth provided the gap Charlottesville needed to emerge victorious.

After the game, New Kent Head Coach Garrett Ross spoke about the offensive effort and not being ready during key moments.

“We didn’t shoot the ball and we have to play better,” he commented. “We weren’t ready on some defensive possessions tonight.
“We lost this game, but I don’t feel like they beat us,” Ross added. “They made better adjustments. I feel we can go back out there next week and give them a good game.”

Diggs’ 24 points emerged as the high scorer for New Kent, now 6-2 on the season. Dillon Mickles also finished in double figures with 11 points, Ross dropped in nine, Carr pitched in with five, the duo of Josiah Reedy and Michael Hetzel each tossed in four, Reggie Jackson added two, and Ethan Smith chipped in with one.