New Kent tops Charles City 89-79 in rivalry renewal part one

New Kent's Jason Whitlow (left) and Charles City's Craig McElroy battle under the board for a first half rebound.

Alan Chamberlain photos

Shaking off the effects of a third game in four days, New Kent’s host Trojans sank 16 threes and held a double-digit lead for most of the second half on the way to an 89-79 win Saturday in the first installment of the annual basketball rivalry with Charles City’s Panthers.

Wednesday night, the Trojans suffered a blowout loss at Bruton, but bounced back Friday with an overtime win at Warhill. To offset the fatigue factor in what figured to be an up-tempo contest with the Panthers, Trojan coach Ronnie Cox frequently dipped into his bench. And the strategy appeared to work.

The hosts sank 10 first half threes to build a 42-31 advantage at the break. The lead reached 15 on three occasions in the second half against a Panther team that refused to fold. The Trojans could never put the visitors away with a knockout blow.

“I knew our legs were going to go tonight and they did in the fourth quarter,” Cox said afterward. “If there had been one more quarter, we’d have been in a world of trouble.

“We tried to get as many legs on the court as we could,” he said. “We were able to put some threes down and that helps.”

Six threes and 35 points from Blake Kelley led the way. Trey Cox struck five times from behind the arc and finished with 16 points. Micah Scorsone, Christian Block, and Mikel Chalmers combined for the remaining treys. Scorsone totaled 16 points followed by Block’s 10, Tommy Hale’s five, Chalmers’ three, and two each from Ryan Lugg and Jason Whitlow.

Cox also had a ploy for attempting to contain Panther leading scorer Antonio Harris, who came in averaging just over 30 points per game. A box-and-one defense with Hale and Chalmers splitting time on Harris worked in the first half. Harris was held to seven points, but broke loose after the break to finish with 25.

“Surprisingly, we’ve not seen the box this year,” said Panther coach Aaron Dodge, adding that most opponents have double-teamed his star player and noting that his players were unable to adjust to New Kent’s tactics until the second half.

“We stayed with them,” Dodge said. “Everyone else stepped up and other guys came through tonight. I’m really happy with that. That’s what I’m looking for and want to do every night.”

Gavin Cotman tossed in 18 points for Charles City (2-9) while Noah Ragland and Thomas Kelly ended with nine and eight, respectively. Michael Callahan contributed seven followed by James Adkins’ five, Craig McElroy’s four, Jestin Harris’ two, and Khairi Wyatt’s one.

“[The Panthers] are a solid team, and they didn’t quit,” said Cox, whose team improved to 6-5. “I knew we’d be flat tonight, but I’ll take [this win].”

Charles City’s Gavin Cotman muscles his way over New Kent’s Ryan Lugg for a second half shot.