Purnell Swett coach Jeremy Sampson
And it showed in more ways than one.
With FMA flexing a front court of Forrest Johnson (6-foot-9), Rashed Anthony (6-8) and Jared Scott (6-7), inside buckets were few and far between for the Rams in their 51-38 loss to the Cougars in opening round action of the two-day Staffing Alliance basketball invitational at Purnell Swett High School.
FMA faces Christian Faith Academy, which defeated Red Springs 71-47, in today’s championship game at 8:30 p.m. Swett plays Red Springs at 5:30 p.m.
“Their size was tougher than we’re used to,” Swett coach Jeremy Sampson said of FMA. The Rams were also plagued by 22 turnovers. “It forced us into some turnovers. I feel like we just didn’t take care of the ball.”
The Rams managed to jump out to an 8-3 lead five minutes in to a defensive-laced first quarter before the Cougars’ height began shaping the outcome of game.
Using its length to pump in put-back shots and disrupt Swett’s shots, FMA ended the frame on a 7-0 run that eventually swelled to 16-0 unanswered Cougar points, putting them in front 19-8 at 3:22 in the second. The run was stamped with a slew of blocked shots, including an Anthony swat sent deep out of bounds.
Inside and out, the Rams struggled to find good looks at the hoop all night.
“We can’t simulate that (size) in practice,” Sampson said. “I don’t think we’ll see anybody as good as that team in our conference.”
Swett’s James Chavis finally snapped the scoring skid with a baseline jumper at 3:10 left in the first half. He finished with a team-high 15 points, including three 3-pointers.
Darrin Williams finished with a game-high 19 for FMA, which took a 27-13 lead into halftime.
“We knew eventually things would open up a little bit more offensively,” FMA coach Derrick Bond said. “Defense is the point of emphasis. I think with our size, our length and our athleticism we can keep ourselves in a lot of games. Offensively, we’re trying to find out who we are.”
The Rams got their final points of the half on a show-stopping and-one from Juwan Jones, who weaved along the baseline and elevated in a lay-in over the Cougars’ towering front court as he was fouled.
Chavis helped trim the deficit to nine with a three late in the third — he scored 10 points in the quarter — but that was as close as it got the rest of the night.
“We made a little run in the third quarter,” Sampson said. “Our guys fought hard and I commend them for that. They didn’t quit.”
Tyrell McDonald scored nine of Swett’s 11 fourth-quarter points. He finished with 12.
On the girls side, Swett spread the scoring in a 54-34 win over Flora Macdonald.
Kayla Lewis led 10 Rams’ scorers with 11 points. Laura Bird chipped in eight.
Jamie Powers carried the Cougars with a game-high 24.
Red Springs girls cruise, boys fall
In the Staffing Alliance opener, D’niqua Murphy’s 15 points led the Red Springs girls to a 56-22 victory over Riverside Christian Academy.
After taking a 18-10 first-quarter advantage, the Red Devils (1-2) kept RCA to single-digit frames the rest of the way.
Chelsi Oxendine added 11 points and Jasmine Murchison had eight and a team-high nine rebounds. Rocio Pecina chipped in eight points, as well.
For the boys, Quinn Lowery’s 18 points weren’t enough for the Red Springs in its 71-47 loss to Faith Christian Academy.
The Red Devils (0-3) were put on the ropes early, trailing by as much as 45-17 at halftime.
Red Springs’ Julian Brown added nine points.
