Published: 05:37 AM, Sat Mar 06, 2010
Terry Sanford advances to regional championship
By Earl Vaughan Jr.
Scholastic sports editor
GREENVILLE - Chris Wilson first drew statewide attention to himself last year when he almost led Terry Sanford to a state championship as a sophomore.
Friday night at East Carolina's Minges Coliseum, with N.C. State's Monte Towe and UNC-Asheville's Eddie Biedenbach watching from the sidelines, Wilson shot his already valuable college recruiting stock up a few notches.
Wilson scored 35 points, at times providing Terry Sanford with all of its offense, and got a big assist inside from role-player Jordan Vann who added 11 points and some key rebounds, as the Bulldogs knocked off Wilmington New Hanover 67-58 in the 4-A Eastern Regional semifinals.
The win put Terry Sanford, 30-0, in the regional title game for a third straight year as the Bulldogs seek their second consecutive regional crown. They will face Durham Riverside today at 5 p.m. at Minges for the title. The winner will advance to the state 4-A title game next weekend at N.C. State's Reynolds Coliseum. The loss ended New Hanover's season at 20-8.
Maybe there was some foreshadowing of things to come with Towe and Biedenbach in attendance. They were both part of N.C. State's famous 1974 national championship team that ended the dominance of UCLA. Towe was the starting guard on the team, and Biedenbach was an assistant coach under the late Norm Sloan. And this year's 4-A title game will be played on the same Reynolds Coliseum court where Towe and Biedenbach labored.
Wilson hasn't made his college choice, but if he has many more games like Friday's, he'll have no shortage of offers. He was 10 of 15 from the field, making both of his 3-point attempts, and hit 13 of 14 free throws.
"Really, I just do what it takes for us to win,'' hesaid. "It seems like when things were going tough, I had to put us on my back for awhile.''
Wilson said he wasn't launching 30-footers all night or weaving through heavy traffic to score layups. "I was getting open looks and just knocking them down,'' he said.
But at halftime, Bulldogs coach Bill Boyette was concerned his team was having to rely so much on one player.
"That's what I stressed to our team at halftime, that we are a balanced team,'' he said. "We have enough depth and balance, and we were counting on getting that the second half. Still, Chris was dominant the second half, but he got some help, which I thought ended up being a big key. Chris' strength really showed tonight.''
Terry Sanford did not put together its usual scoring run in the second half, and the score remained close. Finally, with 4:36 left, Wilson got the help he needed. New Hanover led for the last time, 50-48.
Terry Sanford went on an 8-0 run, and Wilson didn't score any of the points. Robert Carpenter hit the first two baskets, Vann made a follow shot and then Jonathan Rice got inside for a basket.
The result was a 56-50 Terry Sanford lead with 2:34 left in the game.
New Hanover did not regroup, especially the way Terry Sanford shot free throws in the final 1:05. The Bulldogs made 8 of 9 attempts and hit 23 of 28 for the game.
"I think we dug in defensively,'' Boyette said. "We knew we had to have stops. Then when you can go to the line and convert like that late in the game, that's a positive.''
Freddie Jackson had 18 points and Cole Daley 13 to lead New Hanover.
Terry Sanford 67, New Hanover 58
NEW HANOVER - Freddie Jackson 18, Cole Daley 13, Rogers 8, Thames 8, Hill 7, Gibbs 2, Lewis 2
TERRY SANFORD - Chris Wilson 35, Jordan Vann 11, Carpenter 9, Rice 6, Okons 4, Brown 2
Fouled out: NH - Rogers, Thames
3-point goals: NH - Thames 2, Jackson, Hill. TS - Wilson 2, Vann, Okons.
Records: NH 20-8, Terry Sanford 30-0
Scholastic sports editor Earl Vaughan Jr. can be reached at vaughane@fayobserver.com or 486-3519.