By By BRIAN HAINES, Sports Writer
CHOCOWINITY — After three closely contested quarters between No. 5 seed Northside and No. 4 seed Southside, the Panthers pounced on the Seahawks in the fourth quarter to run away with a 56-44 victory in the first round of the Atlantic Conference tournament Monday night.
Down 34-32 at the start of the fourth, Northside’s Jakob Pernov and Markel Simmons sank consecutive 3-pointers to cap a 12-3 run that resulted in a 44-37 Panther lead.
Southside threatened shortly after and cut the score to 47-40, but T.J. Slade sealed the deal with four straight fastbreak points to squash the Seahawks’ rally.
Northside coach Mike Proctor said tempo played a pivotal role in the fourth-quarter run.
Proctor said his team shot poorly in the middle quarters, but was able to step up late in the game.
The Panthers’ 24 fourth-quarter points were as much as they scored in the second and third quarters combined.
Backup guard Eric O’Neal along with Slade contributed mightily to Northside’s late production as each scored seven points in the fourth.
Simmons led the Panthers with 14.
With the loss of stars Mychal Parker and Jeremiah Marable for the last month or so, the shorthanded Seahawks have been forced to field a young squad.
Southside’s youth was exposed on Monday when the game got tight at the end, as there were several breakdowns.
The Seahawks (6-15) were led by guards Dionte Dixon and Kendall Ham. After a sluggish first quarter, Dixon carried the Seahawks through the middle quarters where he scored 11 of his team-high 13 points to pace Southside.
Ham got off to a hot start, scoring four of his 10 points in the first quarter, but cooled off as the game went on.
The Panthers’ win (3-18) presents Northside with a good news, bad news scenario. The good news is the Panthers get to continue their season; the bad news is they have to face the Atlantic Conference champions and No. 1 seed Roanoke Redskins, who are 22-1 on the season.
The Panthers will look to extend their season once more when the two teams square off Wednesday at 7:30 in Chocowinity.
Northside 8 13 11 24 — 56
Southside 8 11 15 10 — 44
Northside (56)
T.J. Slade 11, Dixon 4, Martin 5, Linton 2, Pernov 8, Markel Simmons 14, Mason 4, Cox 2, O’Neal 7.
Southside (44)
Moore 5, Kendall Ham 10, Moore 2, Harris 8, Dionte Dixon 13, Holiday 3, Wright 2.
Seahawks’ girls soar
CHOCOWINITY — Heading into Monday night’s Atlantic Conference tournament matchup between No. 4 seed Southside and No. 5 seed Northside, each team knew they would have to rely on their respective star players if it wanted to advance to the next round.
For the first three quarters, Northside’s Rakim Jordan and Southside’ Quiesha Miller did not disappoint as each led their squad in scoring in a see-saw game.
However, with Southside holding a slim 30-28 lead going into the fourth quarter, neither team’s premier player would be a factor as Jordan and Miller were forced to sit because of foul trouble.
With their role players left to decide the game, Southside stepped up and went on a 19-8 fourth-quarter run to pull out a 49-36 playoff victory on Monday.
After finishing an up and down regular season in which his team won only six times, Southside (7-14) coach Bill Lake said he was thrilled to get a postseason win.
With Miller on the bench, Southside’s Antoinette Bragg and Mary Baker played big time in the fourth quarter.
Baker got the Seahawks rally going early by drawing fouls and converting her free throws. A Baker free throw midway through the fourth gave Southside a 38-32 lead.
From that point on Bragg took over as her quickness allowed her to get back-to-back fastbreak buckets to extend the Southside lead to 42-32.
Baker finished the game with nine points, six of them coming in the fourth quarter, while Bragg scored nine of her 10 points in the final eight minutes.
Miller led Southside with 17 points, six steals and two assists.
While the Seahawks soared without its star, the Panthers’ offense stalled. Jordan checked back in late in the game and she, along with Raquel Wilson, were the only ones to score over one point in the fourth. Jordan led her team with 13 points.
Despite the scoring drought, Northside coach Michelle Leathers said she was proud of the way her team played.
The Panthers finished the season 5-20.
Southside will move on to play the No. 1 seed and Atlantic Conference champion Plymouth (14-2) on Wednesday at 6 p.m. in Chocowinity.
Northside 4 12 12 8 — 36
Southside 9 12 9 19 — 49
Northside (36)
Rakim Jordan 13, Rodriguez 1, Meeks 8, Lee 5, Tetterton 3, Burgess 3, Brewer 1, Wilson 2.
Southside (49)
Quiesha Miller 17, Keech 2, Credle 8, Jones 1, Baker 9, Harding 1, Antoinette Bragg 10, Marable 1.