Bears bounce back
Published 3:23 pm Friday, January 23, 2009
AHOSKIE – It didn’t take long to start another streak.
After seeing their 25-game Northeastern Coastal Conference winning streak snapped last Friday, the Bears started another on Thursday night. Hertford County jumped out to an early lead and rolled past visiting Currituck County High School 75-58.
“We came out with intensity and were making smart decisions in our full-court press,” said Bears’ basketball boss Charles Simmons. “We did what we had to do down the stretch to win the game. I thought our effort tonight was very good.”
Dontez Tyler paced three Hertford County players in double digits with 23 points while Antonio Vaughan added 13 and Jordan Jones had 12 points. Antwan Woodley led Currituck with 15 points.
The Bears indeed got out of the gate quickly, scoring the first 13 points of the game and not allowing a hoop from the Knights until the four-minute mark of the first quarter.
Jones started the onslaught for Hertford County while Dekimis Perry, Vaughan and Petey Boone all also got on the board during the 13-0 spurt.
Currituck got back-to-back hoops from Aaron Lindsey and Pierre Friendly to trim the deficit to 13-4, but Hertford County answered with consecutive hoops by Shabazz Atkins to surge ahead 17-4.
Currituck scored unanswered to close the gap to 17-9, but Hertford County got a free throw from Atkins and back-to-back triples off the hands of Antonio Futrell as they led 24-9. A Nick Vinick hoop allowed Currituck within 24-11 at the end of the first quarter.
The Knights chipped away at the lead, getting as close as nine (30-21) midway through the second quarter, but the Bears closed out the remainder of the period on an 8-0 run. Vaughan scored six of those points while Tyler added two as the Bears went into the locker room with a 38-21 lead.
Hertford County built their lead to an even dozen (46-24) when Tyler hit a hoop and a triple back-to-back.
The Knights were able to get as close as 18 (50-32) following a 4-0 run in which they got hoops from Woodley and Martell Cooper. HCHS stopped the spurt with a Boone hoop, but the Knights got a hoop from Woodley who then hit three free throws to close the gap to 52-37 after three quarters.
Currituck scored six of the first sevens point in the fourth quarter and closed their deficit to 10 (53-43) with six minutes to play.
Tyler converted a three-point play and then Jones scored after a Currituck free throw as the Bears pulled back ahead 58-44.
A triple from Woodley and a deuce from Cooper got Currituck within nine at 58-49, but the Bears scored the next seven points to pull away again. Vaughan hit the first shot followed by a triple from Boone and a deuce by Perry that made it 65-49.
Currituck never got closer than 15 from that point as the Bears went on to a 75-58 win.
Along with the three in double figures, the Bears got eight from Boone, seven from Perry and six each from Atkins and Futrell.
Lindsey had 10 for Currituck to go with Woodley’s 15 points. Cooper had nine while Aaron Woodley and Don Everette scored eight each.
The Bears (9-6, 5-1) hosted Currituck last night (Friday) and then will be on the road at First Flight Tuesday.