DUBLIN - The Whiteville Wolfpack came within less than a minute of knocking off the Southeastern Conference regular-season champion West Bladen Knights Tuesday night.
But once again, the Wolfpack’s inablility to hold a lead in the late going came to surface as West Bladen pulled out a 53-52 win. In the opening round of state 2A high-school boys basketball playoffs.
Whiteville led 13-2 after one quarter and held a 14-point lead in the fourth quarter before the Knights rallied from behind on the inspired play of Jamel Hall.
Hall scored 29 points. including 15 in the final quarter as West Bladen improved its season record to 22-3. The Knights outscored the Wolfpack 22-10 in the final quarter to pull out the win.
Whiteville, competing in the state playoffs for the 25th time in 26 years, closed its season with a 7-16 record with most of those losses coming by four points or less.
Sprandon Mahoney scored 14 points for the Wolfpack and Nur Abdullah had 13.
West Bladen will play host to Clinton tonight at 7 in the second round of the playoffs. Clinton advance Tuesday with a double-overtime victory over South Brunswick.
| Whiteville |
13
|
14
|
15
|
10
|
-
|
52
|
| W. Bladen |
2
|
15
|
14
|
22
|
-
|
53
|
WHITEVILLE (52): Mahoney 14, Abdullah 13, Clark 9, Livingston 7, Godfrey 9.
WEST BLADEN (53): Hall 29, Drake 7, McCoy 6, Bracey 4, Gore 4, Fenwick 1.