HIGH POINT — High Point Christian had its moments against Asheville Christian, but it wasn’t enough to reach its second-ever state final.
The Cougars fell behind double digits in the second half but pulled within five in the closing seconds before falling 51-44 against the Lions on Tuesday at HPCA in the semifinals of the NCISAA 3A boys basketball playoffs.
In the girls game, HPCA stayed close into the fourth quarter, but Concord Academy pulled away just enough and the Cougars lost 65-58 in their first-ever semifinals appearance.
“The theme has been putting it all together, and we put it together for about two quarters,” HPCA boys coach Joseph Cooper said. “And to beat a good team like that you’ve got to put it together for four, and we weren’t able to do that.
“We were stuck on 16 forever. I thought we settled. I thought we had some self-inflicted wounds with the six turnovers in the first half — which might not sound like a lot, but when we’re slowing it down and playing slow it was a lot.
“It was untimely turnovers that we were doing. So, we shot ourselves in the foot a little bit with those turnovers. And their size really affects things — I think they had three, four blocks in the first two possessions.”
Thomas McIntosh scored 14 points to lead the Cougars (16-10), the No. 1 seed from the East bracket who were looking to match the 2016 team’s run to the state championship game. Ethan Smith added 11 points while K.J. Garrett had 10 points as scoring opportunities were limited against the Lions’ inside defense.
HPCA led by six in the first before trailing by six in the second. But it rallied to lead by one inside the final minute before Asheville scored the last four points of the half to lead 20-16. The Lions then scored the first 12 points of the third to lead by 16 with three minutes remaining in the quarter.
Asheville (10-16) — which was led by Collin Mills with 17 points and De’Ante Green, the No. 1-ranked junior in the state by 247Sports, with 15 points — stretched its lead to 19 with 3:44 left in the game. But the Cougars rallied to within reach in the final minutes.
“We finally started fighting,” Cooper said. “We finally started playing with some urgency. We were kind of lackadaisical for a long time, especially in the third quarter. And then we finally woke up a little in the fourth.”
HPCA — getting a spark from Smith outside on offense, plus getting stops off turnovers and missed free throws on defense — went on a 17-3 run to pull within five with 36 seconds left. But misses from outside on its last three possessions ended its last-ditch hopes.
Seniors Garrett, Levi Curlee, Cosie Pagano, P.J. Underhill and Johnathan Medlin concluded their careers. Asheville Christian, unseeded in the West bracket, will face Gaston Christian in the championship Saturday.
“With nine new players this year and no real offseason due to COVID, it was kind of putting everything together on the run,” Cooper said. “So, from that perspective, the guys grew a lot and worked hard. But we still have a long way to go.”
The Cougars fell behind double digits in the second half but pulled within five in the closing seconds before falling 51-44 against the Lions on Tuesday at HPCA in the semifinals of the NCISAA 3A boys basketball playoffs.
In the girls game, HPCA stayed close into the fourth quarter, but Concord Academy pulled away just enough and the Cougars lost 65-58 in their first-ever semifinals appearance.
“The theme has been putting it all together, and we put it together for about two quarters,” HPCA boys coach Joseph Cooper said. “And to beat a good team like that you’ve got to put it together for four, and we weren’t able to do that.
“We were stuck on 16 forever. I thought we settled. I thought we had some self-inflicted wounds with the six turnovers in the first half — which might not sound like a lot, but when we’re slowing it down and playing slow it was a lot.
“It was untimely turnovers that we were doing. So, we shot ourselves in the foot a little bit with those turnovers. And their size really affects things — I think they had three, four blocks in the first two possessions.”
Thomas McIntosh scored 14 points to lead the Cougars (16-10), the No. 1 seed from the East bracket who were looking to match the 2016 team’s run to the state championship game. Ethan Smith added 11 points while K.J. Garrett had 10 points as scoring opportunities were limited against the Lions’ inside defense.
HPCA led by six in the first before trailing by six in the second. But it rallied to lead by one inside the final minute before Asheville scored the last four points of the half to lead 20-16. The Lions then scored the first 12 points of the third to lead by 16 with three minutes remaining in the quarter.
Asheville (10-16) — which was led by Collin Mills with 17 points and De’Ante Green, the No. 1-ranked junior in the state by 247Sports, with 15 points — stretched its lead to 19 with 3:44 left in the game. But the Cougars rallied to within reach in the final minutes.
“We finally started fighting,” Cooper said. “We finally started playing with some urgency. We were kind of lackadaisical for a long time, especially in the third quarter. And then we finally woke up a little in the fourth.”
HPCA — getting a spark from Smith outside on offense, plus getting stops off turnovers and missed free throws on defense — went on a 17-3 run to pull within five with 36 seconds left. But misses from outside on its last three possessions ended its last-ditch hopes.
Seniors Garrett, Levi Curlee, Cosie Pagano, P.J. Underhill and Johnathan Medlin concluded their careers. Asheville Christian, unseeded in the West bracket, will face Gaston Christian in the championship Saturday.
“With nine new players this year and no real offseason due to COVID, it was kind of putting everything together on the run,” Cooper said. “So, from that perspective, the guys grew a lot and worked hard. But we still have a long way to go.”
