BELMONT, N.C. – The clock struck midnight on the Chowan Men's Basketball Cinderella story as the Hawks fell to Belmont Abbey in the Conference Carolinas Semifinals on Thursday evening.
THE BASICS
FINAL | Chowan 58, Belmont Abbey 70
RECORDS | Chowan 6-8, Belmont Abbey 17-4
LOCATION | Belmont, N.C. (Wheeler Center)
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
Jonathan McFall paced the Hawks with 19 points and five rebounds. Jaedon Willis tallied 14 points, while Jaylen Dilliard chipped in the 11 points.
Jamal Thomas posted seven points and four assists.
Belmont Abbey shot 64.0% from the floor in the second half compared to 39.3% for the Hawks.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Half:
Jonathan McFall tallied the opening basket of the contest along with a bucket from Jaylen Dilliard to keep the pace with the Crusaders early. Belmont Abbey would go on a 9-0 run before Dilliard went 1-2 from the line and McFall hit a jumper to close the gap to 11-7.
Conference Carolinas Defensive Player of the Year, Jonathan McFall, tallied a putback bucket prior to Tahkey Williams picking up a point at the stripe. Jaedon Willis connected from deep to even the score at 13-all. Willis recorded a layup off an assist from Elijah Hill to give the Hawks a 15-13 advantage.
After a Crusader bucket, Jaedon Willis dialed up another triple along with a triple by Jaylen Dilliard to push the lead to 21-15 and force a Crusader timeout. Tahkey Williams recorded a layup to offset a bucket by the opposition.
Belmont Abbey rallied with a small run to cut the deficit to two, before Jamal Thomas recorded a layup. The Crusaders tallied a point at the stripe before Jonathan McFall posted the front-end of the three-point play.
The Hawks would take a 27-22 lead into the locker room.
Second Half:
Jonathan McFall started off the second half the way he did to start the game with a jumper. Belmont Abbey countered with a 9-0 run to regain the lead, 31-29, and force a timeout. Elijah Hill ended the run with a jumper.
Jaylen Dilliard connected from deep to keep pace with the Crusaders. Elijah Hill registered a layup before Jonathan McFall posted a jumper to keep the contest a two point game, 40-38. Belmont Abbey would go on a run to push their advantage to 50-38 as the Hawks were held scoreless over the next four minutes.
Jamal Thomas would end the drought with a layup. The Crusaders continued their run with a pair from the stripe before Thomas hit a jumper. Jonathan McFall tallied a pair from the stripe as Belmont Abbey pushed their lead to 60-45.
Jaedon Willis knocked down all three at the stripe and a triple in transition. Jonathan McFall added a three-point play to close the gap to 62-54 with 1:53 remaining.
Jaylen Dilliard added a layup with a minute to play, 65-56. After a pair of free throws by the Crusaders, Jonathan McFall tallies a layup.
SEASON RECAP
The Hawks posted a 6-8 overall record with their first-ever trip to the Conference Carolinas Basketball Championship.
