BANNER ELK, N.C. – The Chowan Men's Basketball team started off the contest on fire to hand regionally-ranked Lees-McRae their first home loss of the season, 87-75, in Conference Carolinas action on Saturday afternoon.
After picking up Chowan win #100 in the win against Limestone, head coach Brett Vincent secured win #200 in his career with the victory over Lees-McRae.
THE BASICS
FINAL | Chowan 87, Lees-McRae 75
RECORDS | Chowan 7-8 (4-6), Lees-McRae 12-5 (5-4)
LOCATION | Banner Elk, N.C. (Williams Gym)
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
BJ McLaurin was dominant at both ends of the floor with a team-high 25 points and a career-high 17 rebounds including eight offensive boards.
Tahkey Williams was a huge spark for the Hawks with 17 points including 5-6 from deep. Jaylen Dilliard, Michael Kelly and Jamal Thomas were in double-figures with 11, 11, and 10 points each. Thomas added eight assists.
Khalil Ridges missed out on his double-double with nine points and 10 rebounds.
The Hawks shot 52.8% from the floor in the first half to pace the offense. Chowan led by as many as 22 points with 1:47 remaining in the opening half.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Half:
Jamal Thomas put the Hawks on the board with a basket before Tahkey Williams knocked down a triple to give the Hawks a quick 5-0 lead. Michael Kelly added a layup to continue the early run by the Hawks. Thomas and Khalil Ridges knocked down back-to-back triples to lead 13-0 before LMC scored their opening basket.
LMC knocked down a triple, but BJ McLaurin registered a putback to offset the scoring. Michael Kelly scored to continue the run, 17-5. Brandon Mayhan and Ja'Darien Wade added a bucket each to push the advantage to 21-8.
The Bobcats cut the deficit to 21-13 with a quick 5-0 run. Jamal Thomas ended the run with a layup to push the lead back to double-digits. Tahkey Williams knocked down back-to-back triples to extend the advantage to 29-15.
Out of the media timeout, BJ McLaurin added a pair from the stripe. Tahkey Williams knocked down a triple to maintain the double-digit advantage. Jaylen Dilliard added a layup to lead 38-21 with six minutes remaining in the half.
BJ McLaurin added on to the Hawks' lead with the old-fashioned three-point play. Michael Kelly added a pair from the stripe to offset the Bobcats' attempt of a rally, 43-26. Tahkey Williams and McLaurin added a bucket in the paint.
Following a 1-2 attempt by the Bobcats at the stripe, Khalil Ridges added a layup at the other end to push the lead to 49-27 late in the half. The Bobcats woes continued at the line with another 1-2 trip. LMC added a dunk at the end of the half as the Hawks led 49-32.
Second Half:
Michael Kelly recorded the opening points of the half for the Hawks with the old-fashioned three-point play. The offset scoring continued as BJ McLaurin added a layup and a three pointer. LMC chipped away at their deficit with a three-pointer, 57-45.
The Bobcats ramped up the defense with a 7-0 run and held the Hawks scoreless for over four minutes. BJ McLaurin ended the stall with a dunk off a pass from Jaylen Dilliard. LMC cut the deficit to single-digits with 10:29 to play with a pair from the stripe.
Tahkey Williams knocked down a triple but the Bobcats answered at the other end. Jamal Thomas would drive the lane and hit the front-end of the three-point play. BJ McLaurin knocked down a three pointer to push the lead back to double-digits, 67-54, just over a minute later.
After a Bobcat bucket, Jaylen Dilliard converted with a jumper to maintain the advantage. Dilliard knocked down a triple to counter the three point shooting by the Bobcats, 72-62, with 6:38 remaining. BJ McLaurin added a bucket to keep the double-digit advantage.
BJ McLaurin continued to show his presence in the paint adding a three-point play to push the lead to 77-64. LMC picked up a pair from the stripe and a transition bucket before Michael Kelly hit the front-end of the three-point play.
Chowan salted away the victory at the charity stripe as Jamal Thomas, Khalil Ridges, BJ McLaurin, and Jaylen Dilliard picked up points at the stripe.
Lees-McRae connected from deep but the Hawks took the victory 87-75.
UP NEXT
Chowan will look to continue their modest win streak as the Hawks hit the road to take on North Greenville on Monday, January 20. Tip-off is slated for 2pm.
