Trojans win close matchup with area foe Rehobeth
Published 3:00 am Saturday, January 9, 2016
It wasn’t pretty but the Charles Henderson Trojans gutted out a tough 58-50 win over the Rehobeth Rebels on Friday.
The Trojans held sizeable leads but the gritty play of the Rebels along with mistakes by the Trojans kept Rehobeth in the game.
“It was sloppy; we played sloppy,” said Trojans head coach Carl Hollis. “I am grateful for the win, but I am not pleased with the win.”
Rehobeth had a hard time penetrating the wall that is Joshua Roberts, who owned the inside of the paint and gobbled up rebounds in the first half. Jalante Smith kicked off the offense with a three-pointer, and the Trojans went on an 8-0 run at the end of the quarter for a 15-7 lead.
In the second quarter the size and athleticism of both Smith and big man Roberts proved too much for Rehobeth to handle. Roberts scored six points and used his height for all of them, including a rim rocking alley-oop.
Rehoboth’s only saving grace in the half came from behind the arc, as the Rebels hit four three pointers. The Trojans outscored the Rebels 15-12 in the second quarter and entered halftime with a 30-19 lead.
Rehobeth made a strong charge in the third quarter and came within six points of tying the game. The Trojans, who dominated the inside game the majority of the night, put up a lot of three’s and just weren’t successful.
“It was selfishness,” Hollis said. “You can’t play basketball selfish. You have to move the basketball and work until you get something good.”
One of the players that was successful was Smith, who knocked down five shots from behind the arc including two at the end of the third quarter.
The Trojans were able to rebuild their lead back up to 13 points before the sharp shooters of Rebobeth started to heat up. The Rebels connected on a trio of three pointers to cut the Trojans lead to 49-42 with 4 minutes remaining.
Nathan West was the standout for the Rebels in the second half, connecting on four three-pointers and finishing with 13 points.
Smith led all scorers with 20 points on the night for the Trojans while Cordell Anderson finished with 15.
The Trojans will head to Brundidge to take on the Pike County Bulldogs Saturday at 7 p.m.
“They are strong and athletic,” Hollis said. “It’s going to be tough on us down there. If we played like we played tonight we will not come out on top.”