Flyers Prep for Conference Play with Solid MLK Day Victory

Taking nothing for granted against a team it defeated by a wide margin in November, the Sandhills Community College basketball team was sharp, and entertaining, on the way to a 106-46 victory over Hosanna Bible College on Martin Luther King Jr. Day at The Hangar.

Currently No. 1 in NJCAA Division III in field goal percentage, the Flyers connected on 62 per cent of their shots from the field.  Ayden Gittens, a 6-foot-6 freshman, found the net on eight of his nine shots, scoring a team-high 18 points. Other scoring leaders for the winners were Bryan Quiller with 17 points and Joey McMullin with 14.

Head Coach Mike Apple's squad takes a record of 16-3 into a game against the Methodist Junior Varsity team at 8 p.m. on Thursday in Fayetteville.  With the first of three conference games in a row, following on Saturday at home against Oxford Emory (GA), the Flyers coaches were looking for a quality performance against the squad from Durham.

"That's Sandhills basketball," Assistant Coach Tramaine Pride said afterward. "We want to keep it fast and entertaining. Knowing we start conference on Saturday, the emphasis was on defense and being able to lock things down, because we know we can score. The challenge is to be mentally tough no matter who the opponent is."

Three balls coupled with steals and baskets in transition set the tone in the first half. The first field field goal of the game came on a steal for two by Jamori McDougald.  Kendall Wooldridge contributed a pair of treys, and later when Alon Hanani drove for two at the six-minute mark, it hiked the Flyers' lead to 35-8.

A three by Chad Kinch as the first half wound down, the team's fifth in seven attempts, led to a 52-22 advantage at the intermission.

Early in the second half, McDougald and LeNijel Robinson assisted on a pair of dunks by Quiller before Robinson threw down a teammate's miss for a third. The final two baskets of an entertaining second half, in spite of the huge lead, came on dunks, by Gittens and Jamal Williams.

For Gittens, an all-conference player as a senior at Overhills High School, who had seen his minutes slip to an average of about five per game over the previous four outings, the breakout performance could not have come at a better time.

"I definitely needed a game where I could get a rhythm and see the shots fall," he said afterward. "The coaches just emphasized, staying ready and practicing hard so that when I come into the game it's easy.

"It was a good win today.   Coach put the emphasis on defense, coming off the win against New Hope, and not playing down to the competition."

Pride added: "We actually let Ayden know a while back we expected him to be at this level after being a really good high school player. He has put in a lot of work and finding that confidence here and now just shows how hard work pays off."

The defensive effort by the Flyers helped produce 26 turnovers, leading to 37 points. Jaquan Thurman led the team in both steals, with five, and in rebounds, with nine. McDougald recorded a team-high six assists. The 6-foot freshman, also from Overhills, scored 11 points and blocked two shots to move up to second on the team behind Quiller in the latter category.

T.J. Gill, who was a member of the Flyers' 2012 national championship team, coaches the Methodist junior varsity. He completed his playing career there and led the Monarchs in three-point baskets in both seasons.

In a game played earlier in the day at The Hangar, the Pinecrest High School boys (9-6) defeated Apex Friendship (10-7), 74-66.

C. Bergmann