Arendell Parrott defeats Bethel Christian for second time this season
By Scott Cole / Correspondent
Riding a three-game winning streak, the Bethel Christian Academy boys basketball took on the Arendell Parrott Academy Patriots on Friday night APA’s Christmas tournament. Parrott had taken the first matchup of these two teams back in November and the Trojans were looking for revenge, but the Patriots dominated the second meeting 59-40.
“We had high quality shooting very early on. We only missed two or three shots in the first quarter,” said APA coach Wells Gulledge. “We extended our defense and played a tough man-to-man. If you can’t play man-to-man, you can’t play at this level. We forced Bethel to make some uncomfortable shots and did a lot to neutralize their shooters. It was a hard fought win for us tonight.
“We did play like we normally do. We didn’t play as well as we have been,” said Bethel’s Tyler Sutton. “We’ve been averaging 70-80 points a game the last few games and here we barely get 40. It was not a good team game. We could have done a lot better than what we did.” Sutton shared the team lead of 12 points for the Trojans. He also led the team with four blocks and four rebounds.
The Patriots scored first on a three point shot by Joseph Spear. The Trojans answered it a minute later with one by Cole Williams. Bethel began to employ their run and pass offense; bringing up screens to disguise their true intentions. The fast play did confuse the Parrott defenders, but the Patriots’ size helped them to better control the rebounding game, with Harrison McLawhorn snagging seven rebounds in the first frame. A late three-pointer by Kris Wooten helped to put some distance between the teams as APA held a 17-11 lead after the first quarter had come to a close.
“Parrott can move the ball as good as any team I’ve seen. They made their shots, transitioned well, defended well. Got to give them credit,” said Bethel coach Burt Potter. “We missed a lot of free throws, a lot of three pointers. We penetrated well, but we just were not connecting on our shots. Sometimes that happens. You can do everything else right, but if you can’t make the shots, it comes up for naught.”
The Patriots used a full court press defense in the second quarter, with the change in tactics allowed Parrott to go on a 12-4 run to start the second.
“We gained separation from them in the second and third periods. They were still penetrating through us. Tyler Sutton was shutting us down and did a great job staying out of foul trouble. He did a great job on defense against us,” said Coach Gulledge. “But we got to a point where we began to connect on our shots and played some really efficient basketball.”
Michael Fulcher tried to jump start the Bethel offense. Scoring eight of his 12 points in the last half of the second quarter, he was trying close the gap that APA had built up. The Trojans were able to slow APA down in the last four minutes of the half, but were still down 31-22.
Parrott Academy opened up the second half scoring the first six points of the third quarter. Bethel roared back scoring five unanswered of their own. The seesawing continued throughout the third as the Patriots would carry a 13-point lead into the final frame.
Nobody’s shots were hitting to start the fourth. It took almost three minutes before someone, Fulcher, finally nailed a basket. After his shot, APA began firing long range. Spear, Wooten, and Banker nailed three point shots and extended Parrott Academy’s lead.
“It was a good team effort. We moved the ball well,” said Banker. “It took a while for us to get going, but we stayed focused all four quarters and then pulled away at the end. We shot really well and played a good defensive game.”
Banker led Parrott with 23 points. Wooten added 12 points and Spear had eight. McLawhorn had 12 rebounds.
“Harrison did a wonderful job on defense. He blocked the middle. He has a huge upside. AJ shot efficiently and attacked the bucket well. Kris had a good night feeding AJ and others on their shots when we went on our scoring runs. Kris is more than just a spot shooter and this game showed that. He brings a lot of strength to our team’s offense,” said Coach Gulledge.
“They made a lot of three point shots near the end that put it away. Some of them were contested by us, so I was proud that we kept fighting. We hung in there, but they kept making their shots,” said Coach Potter. “This was a good test for us. When we come back from Christmas break, we’re going to move into conference play. This game will help to show us what we need to focus on so we can compete with the teams we need to beat.”
By Scott Cole / Correspondent
Riding a three-game winning streak, the Bethel Christian Academy boys basketball took on the Arendell Parrott Academy Patriots on Friday night APA’s Christmas tournament. Parrott had taken the first matchup of these two teams back in November and the Trojans were looking for revenge, but the Patriots dominated the second meeting 59-40.
“We had high quality shooting very early on. We only missed two or three shots in the first quarter,” said APA coach Wells Gulledge. “We extended our defense and played a tough man-to-man. If you can’t play man-to-man, you can’t play at this level. We forced Bethel to make some uncomfortable shots and did a lot to neutralize their shooters. It was a hard fought win for us tonight.
“We did play like we normally do. We didn’t play as well as we have been,” said Bethel’s Tyler Sutton. “We’ve been averaging 70-80 points a game the last few games and here we barely get 40. It was not a good team game. We could have done a lot better than what we did.” Sutton shared the team lead of 12 points for the Trojans. He also led the team with four blocks and four rebounds.
The Patriots scored first on a three point shot by Joseph Spear. The Trojans answered it a minute later with one by Cole Williams. Bethel began to employ their run and pass offense; bringing up screens to disguise their true intentions. The fast play did confuse the Parrott defenders, but the Patriots’ size helped them to better control the rebounding game, with Harrison McLawhorn snagging seven rebounds in the first frame. A late three-pointer by Kris Wooten helped to put some distance between the teams as APA held a 17-11 lead after the first quarter had come to a close.
“Parrott can move the ball as good as any team I’ve seen. They made their shots, transitioned well, defended well. Got to give them credit,” said Bethel coach Burt Potter. “We missed a lot of free throws, a lot of three pointers. We penetrated well, but we just were not connecting on our shots. Sometimes that happens. You can do everything else right, but if you can’t make the shots, it comes up for naught.”
The Patriots used a full court press defense in the second quarter, with the change in tactics allowed Parrott to go on a 12-4 run to start the second.
“We gained separation from them in the second and third periods. They were still penetrating through us. Tyler Sutton was shutting us down and did a great job staying out of foul trouble. He did a great job on defense against us,” said Coach Gulledge. “But we got to a point where we began to connect on our shots and played some really efficient basketball.”
Michael Fulcher tried to jump start the Bethel offense. Scoring eight of his 12 points in the last half of the second quarter, he was trying close the gap that APA had built up. The Trojans were able to slow APA down in the last four minutes of the half, but were still down 31-22.
Parrott Academy opened up the second half scoring the first six points of the third quarter. Bethel roared back scoring five unanswered of their own. The seesawing continued throughout the third as the Patriots would carry a 13-point lead into the final frame.
Nobody’s shots were hitting to start the fourth. It took almost three minutes before someone, Fulcher, finally nailed a basket. After his shot, APA began firing long range. Spear, Wooten, and Banker nailed three point shots and extended Parrott Academy’s lead.
“It was a good team effort. We moved the ball well,” said Banker. “It took a while for us to get going, but we stayed focused all four quarters and then pulled away at the end. We shot really well and played a good defensive game.”
Banker led Parrott with 23 points. Wooten added 12 points and Spear had eight. McLawhorn had 12 rebounds.
“Harrison did a wonderful job on defense. He blocked the middle. He has a huge upside. AJ shot efficiently and attacked the bucket well. Kris had a good night feeding AJ and others on their shots when we went on our scoring runs. Kris is more than just a spot shooter and this game showed that. He brings a lot of strength to our team’s offense,” said Coach Gulledge.
“They made a lot of three point shots near the end that put it away. Some of them were contested by us, so I was proud that we kept fighting. We hung in there, but they kept making their shots,” said Coach Potter. “This was a good test for us. When we come back from Christmas break, we’re going to move into conference play. This game will help to show us what we need to focus on so we can compete with the teams we need to beat.”
