Flyers Paced by Johnson, Nelson in Road Win Over Titans

Nasir Johnson scored 28 points, and Isaiah Nelson contributed 22 off the bench, to lead the Sandhills Community College basketball team to a 106-99 victory over Guilford Tech on Wednesday in Jamestown.

The Flyers improved to 4-1 while the Titans dropped to 2-2. Coach Mike Apple's squad returns to action on Saturday with a 3 p.m. game against Wake Tech (1-1) at The Hangar.

Leading 47-36 at halftime, the Flyers stretched their advantage to 20 points before the Division II Titans closed the gap. Nelson, a 6-foot-4 freshman out of Cox Mill High School, scored 18 points in the second half to help seal the victory. Overall he was 10-for-13 from the field.

"Isaiah came in with a lot of energy," his coach said. "He got a few quick ones and then the basket got big for him. His teammates did a good job of getting him the ball."

In addition to his Flyer career-high point total, Johnson, a 6-foot guard, also grabbed 10 rebounds, recording his second double-double of the season.  Joey McMullin added 17 points and six rebounds.  Zac Sledge shared team honors in rebounds with 10.

Keegan Brayboy and Sam Stoltz were the assist leaders with seven and six respectively. The team total of 36 was a season-high.

Apple continues to look for more consistency from his team after being outscored 63-59 in the second half.

"The team is a work in progress," the coach said. "I'm glad we won the game."

Former Flyers at Other Places – Elijah Idlett scored 15 points and Evan Davis added 10, but Montreat College was defeated 98-96 in overtime by Tennessee Wesleyan on Tuesday. Donnie Haith scored 10 points for Pfeiffer University in its 96-79 season-opening loss to Queens.

Sandhills – Johnson 11 6-8 28, Coleman 1 1-5 3, Stoltz 3 1-2 9, McMullin 8 0-0 17, Sledge 1 0-0 2, Wooldridge 0 0-0 0, Perry 0 0-0 0, Hunter 4 0-0 8, Brayboy 2 0-0 4, Hanani 0 0-0 0, McCaster 4 1-2 9, Nelson 10 2-2 22, Asante 1 2-2 4 Totals 45 13-21 106. Guilford Tech – McKoy 6 0-1 12, Key 6 3-4 15, Smith 2 3-5 7, Rawlings 0 0-0 0, Sudan 2 2-2 6, Pulley 7 0-0 17, Germany 3 0-0 8, Chesnet 2 0-0 5, Womack 1 0-0 2, Moses 4 0-0 8, Jenkins 4 4-7 13, Carlton 0 0-0 0, Stovall 3 0-0 6 Totals 40 12-19 99. Three-point goals: SCC 3 (Stoltz 2, McMullin); GTCC 6 (Pulley 3, Germany 2, Jenkins, Chesnut).  

C. Bergmann