Patriots

edge Pioneers
By Steve Behr
sports@wataugademocrat.com

MORGANTON — When Freedom needed to make foul shots, it did.

It didn’t look like such a bad idea for Watauga to put the Patriots on the foul line in the third quarter, when they hit 2-of-7 from the line. But Freedom turned it around in the fourth quarter by making its final 9-of-10, providing just enough offense to take a 99-95 victory over the visiting Pioneers.

Right to the end, neither team stopped punching in the Northwestern 4-A Conference slugfest. Watauga’s Zach Greene drained two 3-point shots in the game’s final 10 seconds, which normally would be devastating to any opponent.

But when the Patriots were sent to the foul line after each shot, they came through with four free throws, which were enough to clinch the victory.

“I have to give (Watauga) coach (Rob) Sanders credit,” Freedom coach Casey Rogers said. “They’ve sold those kids on something that works and we were very fortunate to win tonight.”

Watauga has broken the 90-point barrier in each of its two games since switching to its fast-tempo offense. The Pioneers blasted South Caldwell 96-63, but the Spartans are in the cellar of the NWC.

That’s not the case with Freedom, which is battling McDowell for first place in the conference. Yet Watauga went toe-to-toe and basket-to-basket with the Patriots right until the end.

“I told our guys right after the game that I wish I could have been a part of a team that could score 96 points and follow it with a 95-point game,” Pioneers coach Rob Sanders said. “Rarely are they going to go into a game when they score 95 points and come out on the wrong end of it. I also told them that when coach (Jerry) Moretz and I talked about switching to this style of play, that the one team that scared me the most when doing this was Freedom, because they are so athletic and they can score from all five positions on the floor.”

All of the Pioneers reached the scoring column, led by Greene’s 23 points. Jeff Newell finished with 12 points, while three Pioneers — Will Watson, David Isaacs and Chad Eppley — all finished with nine points.

Cam Steury and Adam Chiarolanzio added eight points each.

The Pioneers hit 38 shots from the field, one more than they hit against South Caldwell. Freedom hit 31 shots from the field, but made 32-of-47 from the free throw line.

Many of those foul shots were made in the fourth quarter. Helped by the fact that the Pioneers had to foul late in the quarter to stop the clock, Freedom made 17-of-22 in the period.

“In the fourth quarter, we made some shots and it was kind of one of those deals where we talked about making plays,” Rogers said. “A lot of times, that’s all it comes down to, making plays when it’s winning time and we were fortunate enough to do that.”

The Patriots got 31 points from point guard Ethan Kincaid, who made 14-of-16 from the foul line. Clifton Avery, Freedom’s 6-foot-6 center, added 21 points, while Sam Ford scored 15.

The Pioneers, after taking a 46-44 halftime lead, saw that advantage slip away after Freedom closed out the third quarter with a 9-2 run. That gave the Patriots a 68-64 lead going into the fourth quarter that they lost just once, when Greene hit a shot that tied the game at 71-71 with 6:30 left.

Freedom led 75-74 when it went on a 7-0 run, capped by a Ford 3-pointer, and took an 82-74 lead that Watauga would close to 82-81 with a three-point play from Watson and foul shots from Greene and Ian Dale.
But Watauga could never wrestle the lead back from the Patriots the rest of the game.

“I really credit Kincaid,” Sanders said. “I noticed early in the second quarter he started to get tired, but he’s very savvy for a high school player. He started walking the ball up the floor until he got his breath and was able to start the offensive end. He’s the heart and soul of that team and he runs it very well.”

Freedom 99, Watauga 95
Watauga (8-11, 3-5)
Fancher 2 0-2 4, Steury 4 0-0 8, Watson 4 1-2 9, Greene 9 2-4 23, Moyer 1 0-1 3, Isaacs 3 1-2 9, Chiarolanzio 3 2-4 8, Newell 5 0-1 12, Eppley 3 3-5 9, Herndon 3 0-0 6, Dale 1 2-2 4. Totals 38 11-24 95.
Freedom (14-6, 6-1)
Kincaid 7 14-16 31, Berry 1 0-0 2, Thomas 1 0-0 2, Ford 5 3-4 15, Michaux 3 1-2 7, V. Avery 2 0-0 4, C. Avery 5 11-14 21, Moore 3 1-1 7, Weatherman 4 2-8 10, Roland 0 0-2 0. Totals 31 32-47 99.
Watauga 26 20 18 31 — 95
Freedom 24 20 24 31 — 99
3-point baskets—Watauga 8 (Greene 3, Isaacs 2, Newell 2, Moyer), Freedom 5 (Kincaid 3, Ford 2). Turnovers—Watauga 19, Freedom 17. Total fouls—Watauga 27, Freedom 19. Fouled out—Watauga, Eppley. Technical fouls—None.