Second half performance propels New Kent to 84-51 victory over West Point

New Kent's Amari Brown and Justin Cox (20) close in to trap West Point's Tyler Lockhart along the baseline during first half action Saturday night.

Alan Chamberlain photo

New Kent’s Trojans dominated in the second half, outscoring West Point’s visiting Pointers 47-26 on the way to an 84-51 basketball triumph.

Saturday night’s clash turned into a rough and tumble affair marred by 60 personal fouls. Neither team, however, fared well from the free throw line. Of a combined 90 free throws launched, only 42 found the bottom of the net.

But New Kent shot 50 percent from the floor (18-for-36) and the foul stripe (10-for-20) in the second half, and those accuracy marks proved more than sufficient for the hosts to up their record to 2-1.

“We didn’t shoot that well in the first half,” said New Kent coach Ronnie Cox, noting that the Pointer defense concentrated on point guard and leading scorer Kyle Claytor. That tactic disrupted his team’s offensive rhythm, enabling West Point to lead 15-13 after one quarter.

“It was a very close game,” Cox said. “[The Pointers] were hustling hard and playing pretty good defense. A combination of their defense and us not shooting well made it a pretty good game at that point.”

The Trojans, however, mimicked West Point’s strategy by targeting Pointer top player Montel Allen. And while Claytor managed to break loose, finishing with a game-high 25 points, Allen did not. The Pointer star was held to a single field goal and nine total points before fouling out midway through the third quarter.

“We tried to keep pressure on Montel,” Cox said. “We kept fresh legs on him and did a good job keeping him from being a factor.”

The Pointers, meanwhile, took themselves out of the game, thanks to poor shooting. The visitors missed 22 of 32 first half free throws. Then a 23 percent accuracy mark from the floor added to their woes.

New Kent’s Justin Cox sank one of two free throws to break a 17-17 deadlock with 5:28 left in the half. Claytor followed with a steal and lay-in, converting a conventional three-point play as the Trojans began to pull away. At the break, New Kent held a 37-26 lead, and an adjustment made in the locker room set the stage for the second half rout.

“At halftime, we switched our flex and started curling in the middle,” coach Cox said. “That got us better looks and seemed to open things up for us.”

Amari Brown’s basket off penetration created a 53-32 advantage with just over three minutes left in the third quarter. The Trojans then utilized their spread offense to push the margin beyond 30 in the final quarter.

Justin Cox with 13 points and Brown with 11 joined Claytor in double figures. Kenneth Woodley and Ryan Curle each scored eight while Ethan Ashford tossed in six, Jared Lugg added five, Michael Amadeo chipped in four, and C.J. Reeders and Cameron Downer contributed two apiece.

Marshall Gill and Derek Healy led West Point with 16 and 11 points, respectively. For the game, the Pointers shot a miserable 21-for-53 from the free throw line.