By Conor O'Neill
BURLINGTON Times-News
The only thing missing was a dunk, and The Burlington School senior John Meeks missed both of his attempts in the second half.
“A lot of people wanted one, everybody telling me, ‘You’re 0-for-2 on dunks, you should’ve got one.’ Oh well, we won, we’re going to the final four,” Meeks said.
All true, none more emphatically so than the Spartans’ 64-21 dismantling of Victory Christian in a North Carolina Independent Schools Athletic Association Class 1-A quarterfinal game in the state playoffs for boys’ basketball Saturday night.
The Burlington School (29-0) advances to the state semifinals for the third straight season, the second time as an undefeated team, and the top-seeded Spartans will face fourth-seeded Northwood Temple Academy at 5:30 p.m. Friday at Covenant Day School in Matthews.
Saturday night’s game presented few challenges, especially early, as The Burlington School led 25-0 after seven minutes. Meeks scored 10 of the Spartans’ first 15 points, Jordan Nelson had nine of his team-high points in that opening run and The Burlington School was off and rolling in its first state-playoff game of the season. Meeks ended with 15 points.
“I know it’s late in the season, but they’re really focused on coming to practice and focused on getting better. We literally think about how we can get better that day,” coach Ron Johnson said. “I know it’s kind of a cliché, but it’s honestly been that way. Which is a good thing.”
Of The Burlington School’s 20 field goals, 13 were 3-pointers. Four came from Nelson, three apiece from Meeks and Trey Cousin, who scored 10 points, and Jordan Jeffries, Makiah Fox and Jahmal Walden each fired in one 3.
The Burlington School shifted between a full-court press and ¾-court press until the 40-point running clock was reached in the first minute of the second half. The strength for Victory Christian (16-15) was inside, so the pressure didn’t allow the Kings’ interior players any chances.
Victory Christian committed 20 turnovers, with several passes going through players’ hands and out of bounds, another hitting a player in the head.
“We were thinking we could pressure their guards some to where they couldn’t see the big guys or get it to them,” Johnson said.
Now, the Spartans are back in the same position they were last season, when Fayetteville Trinity Christian handed them their first loss in the semifinals.
BURLINGTON Times-News
The only thing missing was a dunk, and The Burlington School senior John Meeks missed both of his attempts in the second half.
“A lot of people wanted one, everybody telling me, ‘You’re 0-for-2 on dunks, you should’ve got one.’ Oh well, we won, we’re going to the final four,” Meeks said.
All true, none more emphatically so than the Spartans’ 64-21 dismantling of Victory Christian in a North Carolina Independent Schools Athletic Association Class 1-A quarterfinal game in the state playoffs for boys’ basketball Saturday night.
The Burlington School (29-0) advances to the state semifinals for the third straight season, the second time as an undefeated team, and the top-seeded Spartans will face fourth-seeded Northwood Temple Academy at 5:30 p.m. Friday at Covenant Day School in Matthews.
Saturday night’s game presented few challenges, especially early, as The Burlington School led 25-0 after seven minutes. Meeks scored 10 of the Spartans’ first 15 points, Jordan Nelson had nine of his team-high points in that opening run and The Burlington School was off and rolling in its first state-playoff game of the season. Meeks ended with 15 points.
“I know it’s late in the season, but they’re really focused on coming to practice and focused on getting better. We literally think about how we can get better that day,” coach Ron Johnson said. “I know it’s kind of a cliché, but it’s honestly been that way. Which is a good thing.”
Of The Burlington School’s 20 field goals, 13 were 3-pointers. Four came from Nelson, three apiece from Meeks and Trey Cousin, who scored 10 points, and Jordan Jeffries, Makiah Fox and Jahmal Walden each fired in one 3.
The Burlington School shifted between a full-court press and ¾-court press until the 40-point running clock was reached in the first minute of the second half. The strength for Victory Christian (16-15) was inside, so the pressure didn’t allow the Kings’ interior players any chances.
Victory Christian committed 20 turnovers, with several passes going through players’ hands and out of bounds, another hitting a player in the head.
“We were thinking we could pressure their guards some to where they couldn’t see the big guys or get it to them,” Johnson said.
Now, the Spartans are back in the same position they were last season, when Fayetteville Trinity Christian handed them their first loss in the semifinals.
