WILMINGTON – The New Hanover boys and girls basketball teams fell to Durham-Hillside on Friday.
Both the Wildcat teams committed 24 turnovers in their respective games on Friday night, prompting boys’ coach Kirk Angel to say, “We gave them 24 extra possessions and you’re not going to beat many teams doing that.”
Marius McAllister and Tyquon Reid each had 14 points, Malik Evans scored 13, and Deshon Self added 10 in a balanced attack as Durham- Hillside rode a 14-4 third-period run and a 7-0 fourth-period burst to a 60-51 win over New Hanover in a non-conference basketball game at Brogden Hall.
The Lady Wildcats suffered pretty much the same fate as their inability to protect the ball against the Lady Hornets’ press contributed to several of the 24 turnovers, and several easy baskets, as Hillside rolled to a 73-46 win over New Hanover’s girls.
Boys basketball
Hillside (4-1) jumped out to a quick 14-6 lead over the first 4:10 of the opening period and sustained that lead through the entire first half before the Wildcats took their first lead of the game at 31-28 on a three-point jumper by senior Trevon Brown in the early stages of third quarter.
New Hanover (1-4) then opened a 35-32 lead on a basket off an offensive rebound by Nigel Holley. But the bottom fell out as the Wildcats committed nine of their 24 turnovers late in the period to fuel a 14-4 Hillside run that extended from the 3:33 mark of the third to its conclusion, providing the Hornets with a 46-39 advantage heading into the final eight minutes of the game.
“Turnovers, if we don’t turn the ball over we win the game,” Angel said. “We gave them 24 extra possessions and you simply cannot do that against any opponent, let alone a quality team like Hillside.
“Youth is a lot of it but you can only use that excuse so long. We have a tough non-conference schedule and hopefully it will pay off down the road. If it doesn’t, I’m an idiot. We’ll go back at it tomorrow and work on protecting the ball and move on.”
The two late rallies by Hillside ruined a good period of basketball by the Wildcats as they fought back from the early deficit to trail by just two (28-26) at the intermission. A Holley basket tied the game at 28-28, and a three-point bomb by Brown gave his team a 31-28 just 2:43 into the third quarter.
Baskets by Tyree Johnson and Holley were sandwiched around a single basket by Hillside’s Evans to produce the 35-32 lead. But Evans and Marcus Bowling sparked the 14-4 run to put the Hornets back in command entering the final stanza.
The Wildcats kept fighting back and got to within three at 50-47 with 2:50 left in the game only to see the Hornets take off on a 7-0 spurt, with Self scoring all seven of his team’s points (one three-pointer, 4-for-4 from the free-throw line) during that stretch.
Brown led the Wildcats in scoring with 14 points, and Holley had 13 points and 18 rebounds. Tyree Johnson chipped in with11 points.
Hillside 17-11-18-14=60
NHHS 13-13-13-12=51
NHHS: Trevon Brown 6 0-0 14, Darrius Doughty 1 0-0 2, Brad Hitchman 0 1-2 1, Nigel Holley 6 1-1 13, Tyree Johnson 4 1-1 11, Nykheinma Walker 3 0-0 6, Preston Bryant 1 0-0 2, Garrett Walton 1 0-0 2. Totals: 22 3-6 51. 3-point baskets: Trevon Brown 2, Tyree Johnson 2.
Hillside: D’Ontray Johnson 0 0-3 0, Malik Evans 5 3-5 13, Isaiah Dickens 1 0-0 2, Tyquan Reid 5 1-2 14, Trevion Thompson 1 1-2 3, Marius McAllister 6 0-0 14, DeShon Self 2 5-6 10, Marcus Bowling 1 2-2 4. Totals: 20 12-20 60. 3-point baskets: Tyquon Reid 3, Marius McAllister 2, DeShon Self 1.
Girls basketball
Hillside (4-1) used an effective half-court trap and pressure from a full-court press to force 24 Lady Wildcat turnovers. The Lady Hornets took control of the game early by outgunning New Hanover 17-9 over the course of the game’s first eight minutes, increasing the advantage to 33-22 at halftime.
The Lady Wildcats (3-3) got as close as 38-28 with 3:54 remaining in the third period before the turnover bug fueled a 17-0 Lady Hornets’ run that put the game way out of reach.
“We have to find someone who can handle the ball against the press and run our offense,” Coach Vertha Dixon-Wright said.
“They were a good team but we can’t turn the ball over 24 times. We’ve seen the press over and over again but we’re not getting it. We’re still trying to find out who can do what, and we have about one more week to find out what we can do then we’ll change our rotation and go with seven or eight girls.”
Alexandria Simmons led the Lady Wildcats with 14 points, showing a deft touch from the charity stripe with an 8-for-11 performance. Kapria Pressley chipped in with eight points.
The Wildcat teams both swing back into action on Tuesday, Dec. 11, when they play host to the Cougars of South Brunswick. Those same two teams meet again on Friday, this one in Boiling Spring Lakes.
Hillside 17-16-22-18=73
NHHS 9-13- 8-16=46
NHHS: L. B. Shapiro 2 0-1 4, Tanasia Turner 2 2-2 7, Grace Cameron 3 0-2 7, Asia Davis 1 2-2 4, Rhaven Davis 1 0-0 2, Kapria Pressley 2 4-4 8, Sarah Jonkheer 0 0-1 0, Alexandra Simmons 3 8-11 14. Totals: 14 16-22 46. 3-point baskets: Tanasia Turer 1, Grace Cameron 1.
Hillside: Tykyeah Williams 2 2-4 7, Mylea McKenneth 5 3-6 15, Sydney Brown 1 1-3 3, Justine Lyons 3 1-1 7, Mya Webb 2 0-0 4, Jordan Smith 8 4-4 20, Kristen Smith 1 1-2 3, Daesha Marshall 5 4-6 14. Totals: 27 16-26 73. 3-point baskets: Tykyeah Williams 1, Mylea McKenneth 2.
