New Kent sloppiness leads to Lafayette’s 62-52 triumph

New Kent's Kevin Harris (45) finds an easy score at the basket off an inbound play.

Robb Johnson photo

Friday night’s Bay Rivers’ District basketball contest between New Kent’s Trojans and the undefeated Lafayette Rams presented an opportunity for the hosting Trojans to pull off a much-needed win. But the combination of turnovers, fouls, and lack of execution down the stretch played the antagonist in this story.

Lafayette’s Rams did just enough to escape New Kent 62-52 to keep their undefeated season in check, despite the efforts of New Kent.

After New Kent’s Jared McCaughan’s lay-up opened the game for the hosts, Lafayette went on an 8-0 run to jump out ahead. Lafayette took advantage of its size advantage, grabbing rebounds and finding athlete Tyler Neville, whose three-pointer propelled the Rams to a 12-8 lead heading into the second quarter.

The Trojans ramped up their defense, using the pressure to cut down Lafayette’s advantage to one (17-16) in the quarter. More miscues by the hosts, however, resulted in a 9-2 run and a 26-18 halftime advantage for Lafayette.

New Kent’s Jalen Banks hit a three-pointer to cut Lafayette’s lead down to seven early in the third. But from there, the margin failed to shrink until a putback by Kevin Harris cut the lead to six (54-48) at the 2:11 mark of the fourth quarter. From there, free throws down the stretch by Lafayette were enough to distance the visitors in the game until the final buzzer.

New Kent head coach Garrett Ross commented about the missed opportunities to keep the game competitive.

“There were a few missed plays that we missed converting on, and if we could have converted those spurts, then we could have made it a closer game,” he said. “We missed those with lazy lay-ups and a few easy missed steals that we could have had.

“You got to give a hand to Lafayette,” Ross continued. “They took care of the basketball when they needed to hit free throws and when they needed key rebounds, they got them.”

McCaughan’s 18 points led New Kent, whose record now drops to 1-4. Banks added nine, Calvin York tossed in seven, Spencer Gilland and Harris both pitched in with six, and the trio of Zack Morse, Julius Jacobs, and Jason Hall each chipped in with two apiece.

Lafayette’s Neville was the high scorer in the game with 26 points.