Eagles pull away for 91-69 victory

Cartersville, GA - The CTC Eagles move to 3-0 on the season, after a 91-69 victory over BaselineUSA, in a matchup that was tougher than the score may appear. The Warriors came with a veteran group of former college players, who made things difficult for much of the first half.

The lead traded early on, with the CTC men inching out to a 14-7 lead. But, the Warriors got a bucket from Duron Davis (Marion Military), followed by a pair of treys from Darrell Wilkins (Gordon College) to suddenly put Baseline up 15-14. Though that would serve as their last lead of the contest, Baseline would continue to test the Eagles throughout the first half. The Eagles regrouped, as Philip Garner and Nkem Ojeh both came off the bench to ignite the offense. Garner drained four threes and Ojeh drew several fouls, capitalized at the line, then had a resounding two-handed slam. JR Davis (GHC) kept things interesting for the visitors, as he got free for several driving lay-ins, and Chatt Tech went into half-time with a queezy 42-29 lead.

To begin the second half, Davis and Joselle Payne got quick buckets for the Warriors to cut their deficit to nine, and seemingly re-ignite the challenge, but Jalen Mitchell helped quell it with a bucket, followed by Jamion Simpson insterting himself back into the fold after sitting the entire first half, with a couple of driving scores. Later, Keith Ray finally woke up, hit a three pointer, and decided to effectively finish his drives to the basket. The Eagles began to click, building a solid 75-48 lead at one point.

But, being a game of runs, the Warriors got a couple of unlikely threes from both Davis', and another from Wilkins, triggering a 16-3 run, to trim the CTC lead back down to 14, at 78-64, with about five minutes to go. But, the Eagles were able to silence the run going to Ben Drake, who drew a foul and hit both freethrows, followed by a nifty move in the lane for a jump hook.

JR Davis led the Warriors with 22 points, while Wilkins finished with 15 points and 11 boards. Duron Davis also collected 10 points and 6 rebounds in a losing cause.

For the Eagles, Ray finished with 18 points and nine rebounds, while Garner and Simpson supported with 12 each. Drake finished with 11 points, eight boards, as Ojeh charted another double-double with 10 points, 12 rebounds, to go along with four blocks. Donald Jordan also reached double-figures with 10.

The CTC men will now prepare to go on the road for the first time this season when they travel to face off with a tough West Georgia Tech squad. Tipoff is set for 7:30pm at Oak Mountain Academy - 222 Cross Plains Road, Carrollton, GA 30116.