FAIRMONT — Thursday night’s Three Rivers Conference matchup between Whiteville and Fairmont featured two teams looking to rise from the jumbled center of the league. In the third quarter, the Wolfpack used a run to create separation in the game and the standings, snatching a 59-52 road win.
Whiteville (10-7, 5-6 TRC) forward Cameron Richardson capped the decisive spurt with a two-hand slam that sent his bench in an uproar and forced a Fairmont timeout. He finished with 15 points and 19 rebounds, dominating inside for most of the contest.
Wolfpack forward Antonio McFadden had a game-high 19 points and his three-point play with 5:35 left in the third gave the team its first double-digit advantage, 38-28, despite what was a back-and-forth first half.
Fairmont forward Jayvon “Ocho” Morris returned to action after being sidelined four games after aggravating an ankle injury in the team’s first loss to Lumberton on Dec. 5.
Golden Tornadoes coach Montrell McNair spoke about how important his senior leader is to the overall well-being of the squad.
“He came out ready to play even though he’s not 100 percent,” McNair said. “We needed that extra spark…just to give us that confidence to attack their zone.”
Morris finished with a team-high 13 points and was spry early on, accounting for eight of the group’s 16 points in the first quarter as they took a one-point lead into the second.
Morris got in foul trouble, a problem that would plague both teams, and didn’t have the same impact, especially after picking up his fourth just minutes into the second half.
With Morris watching from the bench, McNair wasn’t pleased with his group’s poise to start the third quarter and thinks that turned the tide.
“I think we got a little careless with the ball and that was something I stressed to them coming out of halftime,” McNair said. “That gave them the intensity and motivation.”
The 12-0 spurt spilled into the fourth quarter as the Wolfpack came in with a 47-35 lead.
Golden Tornadoes wing Waltay Jackson finished with nine points, six of which came in the final period. After banking in a tough layup midway through the quarter, Jackson stole the inbounds pass and hit a runner that sliced the lead to 51-43 with 4:15 remaining. A couple minutes later, he hit a baseline jumpshot that cut the deficit to five, 52-47, with 2:50 left.
Jakeem Moore added eight points and six rebounds.
Despite the Golden Tornadoes increased pressure that forced turnovers, it was McFadden who ended things by converting a layup with 1:41 on the clock to extend the advantage 54-48.
With the loss, Fairmont (5-11, 4-6 TRC) drops to the middle of the pack and has a date with league-leading West Columbus on Friday.
Lady Tornadoes’ winless streak continues
Fairmont girls basketball is off to its worst start in over 12 years and is now winless through 15 games after a 65-29 home loss to Whiteville on Thursday.
The Lady Tornadoes couldn’t find any offensive rhythm early, scoring their first points on a Makenzi Mitchell layup that cut the deficit, 9-2, with 1:43 left in the opening frame. The 12-2 first-quarter deficit would be as close as the group would get.
Whiteville forward I’Reona Johnson proved to be too much of an offensive load, knocking in a game-high 28 points. After Mitchell banked in a layup to make the score 48-21 in the fourth quarter, Johnson scored four straight points to push the lead back out to 56-21 with 3:40 to go.
Georgianna Waters led Fairmont with eight points.
