Wesleyan buries HP Christian
BY MICHAEL LINDSAY
ENTERPRISE SPORTS WRITER
HIGH POINT — Wesleyan Christian’s boys weren’t thrilled with how they play the last time they faced rival High Point Christian. So, they were determined to play much better this time.
The Trojans hunkered down on defense, leading to opportunities for easy baskets in transition, and pushed their lead past 30 points in the second half en route to a 79-51 win Wednesday in the semifinals of the Sheetz Holiday Christmas Classic at Southwest Guilford.
Wesleyan’s girls, keyed by an outstanding performance on offense by Shaniya Jones, also won their semifinal game, beating West Forsyth 60-52.
“We played much better than we did the first time we played them,” Wesleyan boys coach Keith Gatlin said. “Thank God we got another crack at them, because we felt like we let them off the hook the first time. We didn’t defend the ball. But we paid attention to detail this time and that was the difference in the game. When we play defense, we can get out and run — and that’s a beautiful thing for us.”
Jaylen Hoard scored 22 points to lead the Trojans (14-1), who will face Southwest Guilford, which rolled past Lexington 94-51 in the other semifinal, tonight at 7:30 in the tournament championship in the Jim Coggins Gymnasium. Aaron Wiggins added 14 points, while David Caraher followed with 12 points.
Wesleyan, after a bit of a slow start, led 13-9 after one quarter. It scored the first 11 points of the second to lead 24-9 and led by double digits the rest of the game. The Trojans pushed their advantage to as many as 19 points in the first half, led 37-21 at halftime, and got their lead to 31 on the opening play of the fourth.
“We played really well,” Hoard said. “We wanted to bounce back after the last time we played them. We had a big lead in the first half and let them come back.
Coach wasn’t happy with that, becausewe didn’t stick to the game plan. So, we were fired up today and wanted to make a statement.
“It was just ef for t. Last time we didn’t play as hard, but this time we stuck to the game plan. … It was great (how the team executed), because that’s what we’re looking for. When we jell together, we play really well. … We just have to keep playing with effort and energy and stick to the game plan.”
Jalen Seegars scored 31 points to lead the Cougars (10-4), who had won five straight games — including clinching the Peoples Exchange Bank Holiday Invitational last week in Lexington, Kentucky — after losing to Wesleyan 73-62 on Dec. 10. Tyeren Melton chipped in nine points, while Reece Bogan had seven points.
“We didn’t play as well as we would’ve liked,” HPCA coach Joseph Cooper said. “After losing to them the last time, we ran off five straight wins and won a holiday tournament up in Kentucky. So, we were hoping some of that momentum would carr y over to tonight. I thought it did at the start. But we didn’t get back in transition, and that killed us.
“We talked and talked and talked about that, but we didn’t make that adjustment. … I think one of the keys for us was shot selection. We settled for a lot of shots — took one pass here or there and put a shot up. Maybe a long rebound and it’s a long run out. When we took bad shots on one end, we also gave us layups on the other end. So, that was a big part of it.”
BY MICHAEL LINDSAY
ENTERPRISE SPORTS WRITER
HIGH POINT — Wesleyan Christian’s boys weren’t thrilled with how they play the last time they faced rival High Point Christian. So, they were determined to play much better this time.
The Trojans hunkered down on defense, leading to opportunities for easy baskets in transition, and pushed their lead past 30 points in the second half en route to a 79-51 win Wednesday in the semifinals of the Sheetz Holiday Christmas Classic at Southwest Guilford.
Wesleyan’s girls, keyed by an outstanding performance on offense by Shaniya Jones, also won their semifinal game, beating West Forsyth 60-52.
“We played much better than we did the first time we played them,” Wesleyan boys coach Keith Gatlin said. “Thank God we got another crack at them, because we felt like we let them off the hook the first time. We didn’t defend the ball. But we paid attention to detail this time and that was the difference in the game. When we play defense, we can get out and run — and that’s a beautiful thing for us.”
Jaylen Hoard scored 22 points to lead the Trojans (14-1), who will face Southwest Guilford, which rolled past Lexington 94-51 in the other semifinal, tonight at 7:30 in the tournament championship in the Jim Coggins Gymnasium. Aaron Wiggins added 14 points, while David Caraher followed with 12 points.
Wesleyan, after a bit of a slow start, led 13-9 after one quarter. It scored the first 11 points of the second to lead 24-9 and led by double digits the rest of the game. The Trojans pushed their advantage to as many as 19 points in the first half, led 37-21 at halftime, and got their lead to 31 on the opening play of the fourth.
“We played really well,” Hoard said. “We wanted to bounce back after the last time we played them. We had a big lead in the first half and let them come back.
Coach wasn’t happy with that, becausewe didn’t stick to the game plan. So, we were fired up today and wanted to make a statement.
“It was just ef for t. Last time we didn’t play as hard, but this time we stuck to the game plan. … It was great (how the team executed), because that’s what we’re looking for. When we jell together, we play really well. … We just have to keep playing with effort and energy and stick to the game plan.”
Jalen Seegars scored 31 points to lead the Cougars (10-4), who had won five straight games — including clinching the Peoples Exchange Bank Holiday Invitational last week in Lexington, Kentucky — after losing to Wesleyan 73-62 on Dec. 10. Tyeren Melton chipped in nine points, while Reece Bogan had seven points.
“We didn’t play as well as we would’ve liked,” HPCA coach Joseph Cooper said. “After losing to them the last time, we ran off five straight wins and won a holiday tournament up in Kentucky. So, we were hoping some of that momentum would carr y over to tonight. I thought it did at the start. But we didn’t get back in transition, and that killed us.
“We talked and talked and talked about that, but we didn’t make that adjustment. … I think one of the keys for us was shot selection. We settled for a lot of shots — took one pass here or there and put a shot up. Maybe a long rebound and it’s a long run out. When we took bad shots on one end, we also gave us layups on the other end. So, that was a big part of it.”
