NEWBERRY — Newberry Academy boys’ varsity basketball had a chance to move up the region standings with a win against top-seeded Richard Winn Academy on Friday night. Unfortunately, they fell short with a 37-25 loss.
The Eagles(8-6, 3-3 SCISA region 3-1A) entered Friday’s contest with a chance to be in sole possession of the second overall spot in the region three of the 1A-SCISA league if they could’ve pulled off an upset against Richard Winn(12-3, 8-0 SCISA region 3-1A). It wasn’t a high scoring contest for either team, which was similar to the first meeting that Richard Win won 36-31 on Dec.18th.
Newberry Academy went scoreless in the opening two minutes and 30 seconds to start the game, but Richard Winn wasn’t lighting the scoreboard up themselves. Javon Conway came off the bench for the home team Eagles and it was just the lift they needed. He knocked down a huge three-pointer, grab two rebounds and got a steal in just a little over four minutes of game action to help get things going for Newberry Academy. They led 10-6 at the end of the first quarter.
The home team Eagles controlled the opening minutes of the second quarter, but the visiting Eagles of Richard Winn made a run late in the quarter to reclaim the lead and never looked back. Also, starting point guard Gavin Rosemond went down with a shoulder injury and couldn’t return.
Richard Winn’s 7-3 run gave them a 16-15 lead at halftime.
The visitors came out of the locker room at halftime playing with much more intensity than the Newberry Academy and took control of the game in the third quarter. The home team Eagles hung around, but had a hard time scoring the basketball. They trailed 28-23 going into the final period.
Newberry Academy tried to make one last push in the fourth quarter, but it was denied by Richard Winn with another good run. They extended their lead into double figures and it was enough to put Newberry Academy to bed. Caleb Wilbanks had a team-high of eight points for Newberry Academy.
Richard Winn remained at the top spot in the region with the win and Newberry Academy fell to fourth in the standings behind Wardlaw Academy and Anderson Christian with the loss. The Eagles will face both in their final five games of the season, but their next opponent will be Cambridge Academy on the road on Jan. 27th.
Reach Greg Hollis @ 803-768-3117 or on X @TheNBOnews