By Ashley McLeod, Staff Writer
Feb 27, 2015, 13:01
CHESTERFIELD — The L.C. Bird Skyhawks were down by one point at the end of the first quarter during their matchup against the Prince George Royals. But once gameplay started again they soared ahead, dominating the rest of the game and pulling out a 97-71 win.
The Skyhawks had a fire lit under them coming into the second quarter. Senior Kenny Williams, the high scorer for the Skyhawks, shot three of his game total of four three-point shots during the second quarter, two within seconds of each other at the start of the quarter.
But the second quarter was also the start of the Royals decline in play. Sloppy ball-handling by the Royals allowed for numerous steals by the Skyhawks. While the Skyhawks scored 21 points in the second quarter, the Royals stayed steady with the first quarter at 16 points. At halftime, the Skyhawks were ahead, 36-32.
The Royals had some trouble coming back in the second half. Even more clumsy ball handling gave the Skyhawks an opportunity to get ahead in points and create a large gap on the scoreboard between the two teams. The Skyhawks put up 32 points in the third quarter, while the Royals only upped their score by 8 points.
The last seven minutes of the game was a back and forth battle for the ball between the two teams. The Royals ball handling continued to be sloppy, but the Skyhawks players were playing maybe a little too excitedly, fouling the PG players six times. The Royals Sunk 14 out of 16 free throws during the second half, a vast difference from the first half, where they only sunk 4 of 9 shots. The team played hard at a comeback during the last seven minutes, scoring a record game record of 31 points in the quarter. But their attempt came too late, and the Skyhawks kept their lead and finished out the game 26 points ahead.
The top scorers for Prince George were junior Cory Hill, scoring 19 points, junior Savonte Chappell with 15 points, and senior Shonquez Henry with ten points. L.C. Bird high scorers were senior Kenny Williams with 21 points, including 4 three-point shots, junior Jalen Elliot with 17 points, and junior Mario Haskett with 14 points.
