Spartans triumph, set up title showdown vs. Cavs

BOYS’ BASKETBALL

CARY — Southern set up a 3 p.m. championship date against crosstown foe Durham Academy with a going-away 60-34 win over Norfolk Christian Academy at Cary Academy.
The win was Southern’s second at the Vision Sports Holiday Classic at Cary Academy and moved the Spartans to 4-6 on the season.
The two straight wins come on the heels of a 68-67 heartbreaking loss to powerful Roxboro Person a week ago when the Rockets banked in a 3-pointer at the buzzer to erase a 67-65 Southern lead.
“We handled Person all night before that shot got us at the end,” Southern first-year head coach Kendrick Hall said Friday. “Ever since that game we’ve been playing better defensively and making better decisions on offense. That game brought us together as a team.”
On Friday, 6-7 junior center Isaiah Maurice had nine points, seven rebounds and four blocked shots, and Javon Riley 10 points to lead the Spartans.

Carrboro 69, Orange 64
GREENSBORO — Carrboro (7-2) took third place in the Eastern Guilford Holiday Invitational with its consolation win over Hillsborough Orange.
Carrboro’s McLean Phipps led the way with a game-high 23 points and got plenty of help from teammates Trai Sharp (12) and Jack Nanney (10).
Jamal Pittman and J.D. Brooks each had nine points for Orange (4-7), while Sean Motley and Jawan Chambers each had eight.

South Granville 49, Athens Drive 43
CREEDMOOR — South Granville advanced to tonight’s 8:30 p.m. title game of its own tournament with a tight win over Raleigh Athens Drive on Friday.
The 2-A Vikings used a balanced scoring attack to topple 4-A Athens. Branden Ragland led the Vikes with 13 points, while Shawn Montren and Mario Thorpe had nine each.
South Granville (7-3) will face reigning state independent schools champion Raleigh Ravenscroft in the final.

Cresset 45, Ridgecroft 30
CREEDMOOR — Shawn Lipscomb, the state’s leading high school scorer, had a game-high 23 Friday, well off his season average of 37.5, but it was more than enough as Cresset (6-6) stopped Ahoskie Ridgecroft (5-4).
The semifinal win in the South Granville Holiday Invitational’s Wake Forest Physical Therapy bracket semifinal, lifted Cresset to today’s championship game at 7 p.m. against Village Academy at South Granville.
Lipscomb led Cresset with nine rebounds. Sherwood Young added 11 points, while Tristan Reese had nine points and seven rebounds.

DA 55, Fayetteville Christian 35
CARY — Durham Academy beat Fayetteville Christian to advance to today’s 3 p.m. championship game against Southern in the Vision Sports Holiday Classic at Cary Academy.
Alston Thompson led the Cavaliers (11-3) with 19 points. DA built a 13-point lead by halftime and was never challenged.

Chapel Hill 49, Bunn 29
BUNN — Chapel Hill rode a balanced scoring attack behind star Anthony Vanhook to an easy win over Bunn in the Bunn Holiday Invitational round-robin tournament.
Vanhook led the Tigers (8-3) with 12 points, Elliot Orenstein had nine and Ryan Hegedus seven. Chapel Hill will meet Kinston (9-2) in the final game of the tournament at 7:30 tonight.

GIRLS’ BASKETBALL
Hillside 47, Dudley 44
CARY — Flu-ravaged Hillside (11-2) limited its usual man-to-man pressure defense, slowed the tempo and pulled away from rival Greensboro Dudley in a 47-44 HighSchoolOT.com Holiday Invitational Mix 101.5 bracket consolation win Friday.
Playing for the third straight day at Cary Academy, Hillside finished the tournament with a 2-1 record, winning its opener before falling in Thursday’s second round.
Jordyn Smith led a balanced Hornets’ attack with 12 points, Mylea McKennith had nine and Justine Lyons and Daesha Marshall eight apiece.
“We’re feeling a little better today,” Hillside coach Ovester Grays said after seeing 60 percent of his starting lineup and several bench players rebound from flu-like symptoms. “We slowed it down a bit to try and kept our energy up. We didn’t use as much man-to-man as we usually do, and ran a lot of zone (defense).”

Middle Creek 50, DA 45
CARY —Apex Middle Creek, a Tri-Nine 4-A Conference member, outscored private Durham Academy 8-3 in overtime Friday to win their consolation finale in the Vision Sports Holiday Classic at Cary Academy.
The Cavaliers had outscored Middle Creek 14-10 in the fourth period to tie the game. Cha’Mia Rothwell led DA (9-4) with 13 points, Liz Roberts had 12 and Naomi Lerner 9. Rothwell also had six rebounds to lead the Cavaliers.

Carrboro 64, Cummings 57
GREENSBORO — Diamond Tyson scored 36 points and added a team-best seven rebounds Friday as Carrboro (6-3) downed Burlington Cummings in the consolation round of the Eastern Guilford Holiday Tournament
Camille Gallagher added 15 points for the Jaguars, who exploded for 27 points in the second quarter of their final game in the tournament.

Chapel Hill 62, Bunn 29
BUNN — Chapel Hill improved to 11-0 with 10 players scoring in the round-robin Bunn Holiday Invitational. Jamella Smith led the Tigers with 18 points.
Chapel Hill will play Kinston (7-3) at 6 p.m. tonight in the finale of the three-day event. Kinston has lost two straight in Bunn.