Trae Churn drops in 2 of his game-high 18 points against Rock Hill Tuesday. (Photo/Kristy Kimball Massey_
BLYTHEWOOD – The Blythewood Bengals’ basketball team (5-2) completed a season sweep of the Rock Hill Bearcats Tuesday night with a stellar 68-45 performance. Blythewood defeated Rock Hill in Rock Hill on Dec. 2 by a score of 51-31.
Despite the previous victory over the Bearcats, Blythewood head coach Zeke Washington was still cautious going into Tuesday night’s contest.
“They’re very athletic with good team speed, they shoot the ball well and rebound well,” he told The Voice. “We’re going to have to play our best and can’t underestimate them.”
Rock Hill came out in the first quarter and threw every haymaker they had as the two teams exchanged the lead 10 times in the opening frame. The Bearcats held a slight advantage at 17-16 as the first quarter dust settled.
However, the second quarter would be all Blythewood. After Rock Hill netted the first basket, the Bengals rattled off 18 unanswered points fueled by 8 of Trae Churn’s game-high 18 points. A 30-foot buzzer beater by Rock Hill’s Jordan McCraw broke the scoring run, but the damage had been done as Blythewood entered halftime with a 34-22 lead.
Coming out of the break, Rock Hill poured in the first two buckets to climb within 8 points, but Blythewood’s Josh Bowers ended the threat with a 3-point play and the Bearcats would trail by double digits for the remainder of the contest.
Blythewood continued to have an answer for every Bearcat threat as Cameron Womack led the Blythewood charge off the bench in the second half by netting 10 of his 14 points.
Washington was pleased with his squad’s performance, but emphasized the need for progression.
“We need to play for each other in order to give ourselves a chance,” he said. “We have to play with a cause and a purpose. We have to play for each other, for the school and for the community.”
The Bengals are back on the hardwood Friday when they host the Eau Claire Shamrocks.
Blythewood 68, Rock Hill 45
RH: 17-5-13-10 – 45
BW: 16-18-15-19 – 68
Individual scoring – Blythewood: Keith Matthews 2, Josh Bowers 11, Keiwan Hammond 2, Eli Lake 12, Cameron Womack 14, Donovan Leach 9, Trae Churn 18. Rock Hill: Lance Crayton 11, Jordan McCraw 9, Japree Perry 10, John McCollough 2, Tyland Adams 12, Dee Addison 1.