NMB basketball teams drop two games to Myrtle Beach

North Myrtle Beach Lady Chiefs and Chiefs had a tough night of rivalry basketball last Friday at the NMB gym. The girls lost a heartbreaker 36-35, while the Chiefs were outscored 69-37.

In the girls game the Lady Seahawks scored the game’s first six points and the Lady Chiefs didn’t get untracked due to missed shots and turnovers until Kaydee Runion hit a three-pointer from the left side to make it 6-3 with three minutes left in the period. Jordan Berger got the next two points of the period for NMB with 1:40 left to make the score 8-5. The only other Lady Chief points in the period were by Daveon Hatchell with a driving layup late in the period, which ended with Myrtle Beach holding a 14-7 advantage.

The second period started with three NMB turnovers and a Myrtle Beach layup for a 16-7 score. Berger hit a three to make it 16-10, and two Myrtle Beach turnovers later, Berger drove the lane to cut the lead to 16-12. The teams then hit another dry spell with Myrtle Beach outscoring the Lady Chiefs 4-2 to take a 18-14 halftime advantage.

The Lady Chiefs got going early in the third period as Jordan Berger drove to the basket following a wild scramble for the ball by both teams. Jermaisha Griffin drove the lane for two points at the 5:40 mark to tie the game at 18, but Myrtle Beach got the next two baskets to go back up 22-18. Berger and Jakara Shaw hit a basket each to make the score 24-22 Myrtle Beach.

Myrtle Beach converted a free throw to lead 25-22 with 2:01 left. Then Hatchell made a big three-pointer for a 25-25 tie. The last minute of the period was wild. NMB’s Griffin scored on a feed from Hatchell and the Lady Chiefs added two foul shots and a three- point jumper by Hatchell at the buzzer for a 32-26 lead after three periods.

The fourth period was not kind to the Lady Chiefs. Turnovers and missed shots allowed Myrtle Beach to regain the momentum and get the lead back 33-32 with 5:24 left in the game. Then both teams were cold until NMB’s Berger hit one of two foul tries for a 33-33 score at the 2:50 mark. Myrtle Beach converted two free throws for a 35-33 lead, but Berger’s driving layup tied it back up at 35 with1:30 left. The Lady chiefs had a chance to win, but Griffin lost the ball driving down the court after a steal, and the Lady Chiefs got the ball back. Jordan Berger drove the baseline but was whistled for stepping out of bounds with 7.4 seconds left.

Myrtle Beach took the ball downcourt, drove the lane and missed the shot but was fouled with 2.7 seconds left in the game. The first foul shot missed, the second was good, and the Lady Chiefs couldn’t get downcourt for a shot.
Coach Brooke Smith tried to find the silver lining in a tough loss. “It was a hard- fought game as you would expect from two rival teams. Turnovers and the inability to finish layups hurt us a lot. It was a tough game against tough competition, but we are still tied for second place in our region. Obviously, the next games are very important, especially our return matchup with Wilson on February 1” Smith said.

In the boys game that followed both teams got off to a sloppy start with turnovers and missed shots. The Chiefs were able to keep it close by overcoming a 5-0 early Myrtle Beach lead with baskets by Travis Collins and four points from Radon Vincent to take a 6-5 lead. A Seahawk basket was followed by a rebound put-back by Casen McClendon and a jumper by Dawson Hardee for a 10-10 tie. With 1:07 left in the period Myrtle Beach closed it out with a basket, a basket and foul shot to take a 15-10 lead after one period.

The second period saw the Seahawks build their lead, outscoring the Chiefs 19-9 in the period. The Chiefs were the victims of turnovers, bad passing and missed shots, while Myrtle Beach took advantage of turnovers for a 21-13-lead at the 4:32 mark. The Chiefs converted a couple of free throws early and baskets by Javi Marlowe and Dawson Hardee to stay as close as 30-19 but the Seahawks scored the last four points of the second period to take a 34-19 halftime edge.

The third quarter was all Seahawks as they held the Chiefs to one basket in the first three minutes of the period while extending their lead to 41-21. The Seahawks also hit three three-pointers as part of their offensive show, while the only scoring in the period by the Chiefs was by Casen McClendon, Collins and Davion Gore. North Myrtle Beach was hurt by more turnovers and poor shooting as Myrtle Beach went to the bench after three periods with a 56-28 lead.

The Chiefs were not able to get any offense in the fourth period. Cameron Gore-Gause hit a three-pointer early on, McClendon scored underneath and Malik Livingston stole the ball and scored but Myrtle Beach still led 63-37. McClendon fouled out with 2:26 left in the game, the rest of the Chiefs failed to score from then on out, and Myrtle Beach went home with a 69-37 victory.

Coach Darcie Vincent was not pleased. “It is hard to find words to describe this game. There wasn’t much to like. We missed layups, missed shots, didn’t rebound well and had far too many turnovers. As the coach I felt it was one of our worst games of the season. We have to be better,” Vincent said.

North Myrtle Beach teams close out their regular season with two out of three away games. They will travel to Hartsville on January 29, have their last home game on February 1, and finish the season at Darlington on February 5.