Something had to give Thursday night when the once beaten Blackville-Hilda High varsity boys took on once beaten Wagener-Salley High in the Hawks Invitational championship game.
Both teams cruised through the first two rounds of the tournament with easy wins, but in the finals someone's streak of victories had to end.
That team was Wagener-Salley High. For Blackville-Hilda High all the bounces went in their favor as the team shot a season high 51 percent from the field in an impressive 76-68 win.
Blackville-Hilda High, which led by as much 13 points in the first half, shot an amazing 15 of 21 from the floor in the first half for a 33-28 advantage.
Fueled by the shooting of Terrell Haynes, the Hawks kept the pedal to the metal, burning rubber for a season high 43 points in the second half.
Haynes had a best effort of the season with 19 points on nine-of 15 shooting, including 10 points in the second half. Senior Roderick
Kearse also had a strong second half performance. After being held scoreless in the first half, Kearse rebounded with 13 points in the last two quarters.
With the win, Blackville-Hilda High improves to 7-1 in the standings.
Blackville-Hilda High coach Michael Beasley said his team stepped up against a good Wagner-Salley squad.
"We knew we had to play our best basketball to beat Wagner-Salley. They are loaded with size and talent," Beasley said. "This was easily our best shooting performance of the season. Offensively, we started the game with a good tempo and was able to maintain it throughout. It was a great team effort. Everyone stepped up and contributed."
For Blackville-Hilda High a season five players scored in double figures. Joining Haynes and Kearse were Roderick Smith, Darren Jones and Dwayne Prophet.
Smith, who has emerge as one of the best low-post players in the region was dominant in the paint with 15 points and 19 rebounds. Jones made a good living from the perimeter, going six-of-nine for 12 points. He also hit two three-pointers. Prophet, better known as the Hawks "Mr. Utility" had a superb game with 10 points, 11 rebounds, six steals and two assists.
"I'm very proud of the kids. They did an outstanding job to get the win. Earlier in the season, we played a lot of zone defense. In this tournament, we played mostly man-to-man and its made a big difference in our performance," said Beasley.
In semi final action Dec. 28, the Hawks flew past Bamberg-Ehrhardt High by a score of 54-35.
It was all Hawks from the outset as the team soared to a 25-18 halftime lead. Prophet, who had 15 points in the contest was the go-to-player for the Hawks early on with 10 first half points. Kearse also had a good first half with eight points on four-of-six shooting. Kearse finished with 15 points.
Also shining for the Hawks were Roderick Smith with 14 points and 13 rebounds. Haynes pitched in five points and six assists.