Roundup: Thompson’s 31 get her past 1,000 career points, lift Scotland over Pinecrest

LAURINBURG — Plenty was going on heading into Tuesday’s game against the visiting Pinecrest Patriots that could have abstracted the Scotland women’s basketball team.

After falling 58-53 to the Patriots in the championship game of last season’s Sandhills Athletic Conference Tournament, the Lady Scots’ attention could have remained on that; junior Morgan Thompson, only 11 away from 1,000 points in her career entering the night, could have diverted the team’s attention, too.

Instead, all of it propelled Scotland to its 16th straight regular-season win in the SAC — a 57-43 decision over Pinecrest.

“Once you saw Morgan get to 1,000, we kind of started playing basketball like we’re supposed to,” Scotland head coach Roshien McClain said. “Pinecrest played hard; they played real hard. (Aysha Pride) coaches real hard for them girls. But as long as we continue to play our style and our way and play defense, we’ll be fine.”

Thompson landed on exactly 1,000 career points with 5:09 remaining in the second quarter, getting past Pinecrest’s Aniya McGregor and sinking a runner; the basket orchestrated a 9-0 run to help Scotland (11-1, 4-0 SAC) take a 21-18 lead.

”I felt achieved,” Thompson said. “Feels great. I thank God, man. I just thank God and my mama, my family.”

A Gabrielle Donze 3-pointer from the right corner for Pinecrest knotted the score at 23-23 at the 2:01 mark of the second, but five points from Madysan Hammonds to close out the half moved Scotland in front 28-23.

Scotland’s advantage increased to 10 with another quintet stretch of points to begin the second half. Pinecrest (4-10, 2-2 SAC) made it 33-26 after an Ava Depenbrock layup and Kahryn Phelps free throw, but the Lady Scots went back up 39-28 after Scotland’s Alicia McClain knocked down a 3-pointer, Pinecrest’s Danaje McNeill hit a layup and Alicia McClain drilled another triple; the Patriots scored the final four points of the third stanza, but Scotland still led 39-32.

Both teams went back-and-forth with points to open the fourth quarter before a right-wing 3 from Depenbrock that she got open for after coming up with the rebound on her backend miss from the foul stripe helped Pinecrest close in 44-38, but a triplicity of layups from the Lady Scots made it 50-38 with 4:08 to go. The Patriots scored on back-to-back possessions to cut Scotland’s lead to 50-43, but Thompson closed with the last seven points to put it out of Pinecrest’s reach.

“I was really impressed with the way Alicia (McClain) played through a little illness,” Roshien McClain said. “Maddie (Hammonds) got hurt in the fourth (quarter), but she’ll be all right. Kayla (Simmons) played big minutes. Emerie (Snuggs) played big minutes. (Madison) Dixon had early foul trouble but hit a big 3 at one point in the game. So I’m really proud of the girls right now.”

Thompson led Scotland with 31 points; Alicia McClain added nine and Hammonds had eight.

Depenbrock dropped 12 points for Pinecrest; Zanodiya McNair netted nine and McGregor scored six.

While the final score indicated a comfortable win for the Lady Scots, it was anything but that early on; the Patriots started up 6-0 just over a minute and a half in.

“I told them (the Lady Scots) that they (the Patriots) were going to come out hard in the first quarter,” Roshien McClain said. “Every game I watched them, they played hard in the first quarter, real hard, winning some games in the first quarter. But we’re not a team that is capable of just blowing out people from the start. We’re not (made) up like that, and that’s great with me. It keeps us in tune to the game.”

Thompson’s first points came on a 3-point shot with 6:02 on the scoreboard to give Scotland life before Simmons dropped a layup, followed by another Thompson trey.

Roshien McClain said he “really didn’t say much” to get his team going.

“This is a veteran team,” he said. “They understand, okay, I see what happened on that play; I see what happened on this play. We’ve just got to keep working and filling the gaps where we messed up at and just keep working, that’s all.”

Seven Pinecrest points in succession followed Scotland’s scoring streak to make it 13-8; after Thompson and McGregor each went 1 of 2 on free-throw trips, the Lady Scots scored three points on two different possessions within the final 21 seconds of the first quarter, putting them down only 14-12.

Layups by Donze and McNair unfastened the second quarter and looked to boost the Patriots. But Thompson’s milestone happened moments afterward, and the game was paused to honor her accomplishment, shutting down any momentum Pinecrest was gaining.

Scotland men hold on late to beat Pinecrest

It was pretty apparent in the early moments of Tuesday’s nightcap between the Scotland men’s basketball team and the Pinecrest Patriots that whichever team’s strategy could be more effective would win.

With both teams utilizing a zone for much of the night and taking away the painted area, Scotland’s size and outside shooting were able to make a difference, with the Scots coming out victorious 48-44.

“We’ve been playing that zone,” Scotland head coach Michael Malpass said. “We can’t play man (defense) based on the numbers and the personnel. We can play it in patches, and we can do things situationally. But I do feel like we took some advantages from a strategic standpoint. I didn’t understand why (Elijah Melton) came out of the game for them. He wouldn’t have come out for me because he was really good. We didn’t really have an answer.

“I was excited tonight because I felt like they (the Patriots) helped us by taking forever. So we were really excited about their ‘not hurry up’ offense. But whatever they were doing, we were like, you’re playing defense for us; keep doing that.”

The win continued a streak for Scotland (6-8, 2-2 Sandhills Athletic Conference), which has triumphed in its last three, including back-to-back conference matchups, since starting 3-8.

“Two weeks ago, I was in my car listening to TobyMac’s song ‘See The Light,’” Malpass said. “And you can say whoever, I believe it was God. But He said to me, you will see the light. And ever since He said that to me, there’s been a total change, total turnaround. And that don’t mean we’re going to win every game. I mean, it’s fun going to practice. The guys love each other. They’re playing as one. They’re giving it all. And it’s just cool that kids can go through adversity and see that God honors people.”

”The young guys that moved up, they really listened and came in as a team,” Scotland guard Jaiquez Caldwell said. “They just listened to the leaders, followed my lead, and were just there to hit big shots in the moment. We’re just playing basketball, loving each other as a family.”

The score for the first six minutes of the fourth quarter was about as tight as it could get, with neither team taking a lead of more than four until Caldwell helped Scotland go up 46-40 with a layup. After each team made and missed a free throw, putting the score at 47-41, Pinecrest’s Javion Saunders netted a 3-pointer with two seconds to go. Scotland’s Dylan Lampley was immediately fouled after receiving the inbound, and after making the first at the free-throw line, he missed the second intentionally. But the Patriots (7-6, 1-3 SAC) got a timeout in with 0.6 left to try and draw up a quick play, which they’d never get off as time expired with the ball in Zymire Spencer’s hands.

“I’ve always felt confident when we have a lead, and we go into what we call our triangle,” Malpass said. “I feel like, if we have a one-point lead, and we get into that offense and make free throws, they have no chance to beat us because they’re going be playing from three points behind from that point on if you make free throws. You’re not always going to make the free throws, but you at least feel better, putting pressure on them. And when you shorten a game, now they have hurried possessions.”

Through the opening 3 1/2 minutes of play, neither team could gain any ground, with the score knotted up at 4-4. But consecutive college-range 3-pointers from Caldwell helped Scotland get the advantage. Scotland’s Shylan Harrell completed a 3-point play after being fouled while making a layup to extend the lead, but an 8-0 run from the Patriots made the score a one-point difference before Lampley’s foul shot with 13 seconds left in the first quarter made it 14-12.

With 6:54 remaining until the break, Pinecrest took a 17-14 lead after a Saunders 3-point shot 23 seconds in and a layup from his brother, Jaden Saunders. It was the largest lead for either team until Scotland matched it at the 3:22 mark with a pair of free throws by Lampley. Spencer tied the game at 24-24 on the ensuing possession, and both teams traded two-point makes to put the halftime score at 28-28.

Melton dunked the first bucket of the second half 22 seconds into it, followed by a London Ravenell layup to put the Patriots ahead 32-28. After Scotland bounced back to even it again at 33-33 and 35-35, Spencer hit a free throw and Savion Jackson made a layup to give Pinecrest a 38-35 lead after 24 minutes of play.

Caldwell was the only Fighting Scot in double-scoring figures with 21 points; Jerrison Dixon had nine, all on 3s, and Lampley had eight.

Spencer led Pinecrest with 13 points, while Javion Saunders hit a trio of treys to score nine and Melton had six.

Scotland travels north to play at Lee County Friday night. Lee County’s men were defeated 118-52 by Richmond on Tuesday; Richmond star forward and North Carolina State recruit Paul McNeil Jr. dropped a new North Carolina High School Athletic Association single-game record 71 points in the contest.