Chandon Davis (120 bangs into the lane. (Photo/DeAnna Robinson)
WINNSBORO (Feb. 18, 2016) – Fairfield Central went into the 2A playoffs full of confidence Wednesday night after a successful regular season. The Cheraw Braves came into The Griffins’ Den with other ideas. A 6-0 run with less than a minute remaining in the game doomed the Griffins as their season came to a sudden end, 49-43.
“We missed a lot of opportunities tonight and that is what hurt us in the end game tonight,” Griffins head coach Devin Liferidge said. “We missed a lot of open shots tonight and against an up-tempo team like Cheraw, it will doom your opportunity to win.”
Fairfield Central jumped out to an early 7-0 lead as their defense initially helped them in the early stages of the game. Cheraw countered the Griffins’ run with a 5-0 run to cut the lead to 7-5 early in the first. Marcus Gibbs’ 5 points in the first helped give the Griffins a 14-9 lead.
Cheraw opened the second quarter with a 5-0 run to tie the game at 14. Cheraw’s Dalvin Taylor scored 10 of the Braves 16 points in the quarter to give the Braves a 25-24 lead going into the half.
“I believe that scoring run by Taylor in the second was the momentum they needed to go into the half and I believe we were never able to match it, which affected our confidence,” Liferidge said.
Cheraw came into the third quarter as hot as they were in the second quarter, starting the half with a 6-0 run. The Braves had six players score in the quarter as they outscored the Griffins 16-12 to go into the final frame up 41-36.
The fourth quarter turned sloppy as both teams struggled with turnovers and offensive charges. The Griffins tied the game at 43 with a big 3-pointer by Jordon Pauling with less than a minute left in the game. But Cheraw went on a 6-0 run to end the game to advance to the second round.
“I am proud of my team this year as we began to make strides to compete with the upper echelon of our region and the 2A division,” Liferidge said. “We were young on parts of our team and we will miss our seniors, but I believe we will be back in this position next season.”
Fairfield Central finishes the season 13-9.
Cheraw 49, Fairfield Central 43 C – Josh Burkett 2, Raekwon Ellerbe 7, Zach Sellers 8, Dalvin Taylor 19, Cameron Gainey 2, Nazir Mallory 7, Jamel Williams 4. FC – Marcus Gibbs 9, Cameron Roseberry 2, Brandon Adams 4, Jordon Pauling 3, Davon Peoples 5, Chandon Davis 11, Akyel Richmond 9.
