First Posted: 2/3/2014

PEMBROKE — There’s no questioning the rivalry between Lumberton and Purnell Swett.

In his final visit to Pembroke on Monday, Lumberton senior Demetri Sheridan had the opponent on his mind.

“This was my last time playing them here,” Sheridan said. “You always remember playing Purnell, so I just tried to put my team in the best position to win.”

The best position seemed to be right under the hoop as he hit layups and short shots off rebounds. By the time the teams left the court, he had played one of the best games of his career. He finished 12-for-12 shooting and 3-for-3 in free throws for 27 points as the Pirates (9-9, 2-3 Southeastern Conference) snapped a three-game losing streak with a 78-56 win against the Rams (3-11, 1-4).

His 11 rebounds made it a double-double.

“We just couldn’t stop Sheridan,” said Purnell Swett coach Jeremy Sampson. “He was the difference, I think.”

Sheridan put up 19 of Lumberton’s 44 points in the first half and was the only Pirate to score more than five points before the break. The Rams moved into a box-and-one defense to contain him after halftime. He only had eight more in the second half while playing limited minutes.

It was both teams’ first game back after getting a week off due to snow.

Sheridan alone wasn’t enough to take down the Rams, who battled throughout the first half. Whenever Lumberton got a lead early, the Rams got the scoring needed to get back into it.

First Lumberton went up 17-7, but the duo of Kendrick Purdie and Tyler Maynor narrowed to one point. By the second half, Lumberton led by as many as 14 before the Rams got it back into single digits on a 3-pointer by Maynor that narrowed the deficit to 44-35 at halftime.

Maynor and Purdie combined for 24 first-half points but went silent as the Swett offense struggled after the break as Lumberton buckled down. They only had a combined seven points the rest of the game, five from Purdie. It included several missed layups.

“I don’t know if they’re tired or they’re trying to do their own thing or whatever,” Sampson said. “Those layups, that was a lack of focus. Down 20, you’ve got to make a layup.”

Lumberton’s game-changing break came 80 seconds into the third quarter. Holding onto a 48-39 lead, Justice Sampson hit two straight 3-pointers, followed by fastbreak layups from Y’Shawn Gaddy and Travis Suggs to go up 58-39 in less than a minute-and-a-half.

The lead got as high as 23 points before the end of the quarter and 25 in the fourth.

Sheridan’s double-double led Lumberton. Travis Suggs also had 13 points and avoided fouling out despite picking up three in the first half. Sampson had 11, including three of Lumberton’s five 3-pointers.

Maynor and Purdie had 15 points each for Purnell Swett, which lost its fourth straight game.

Monday’s game, which was rescheduled from last week, kicks off a busy week for both teams, which are also playing league games today and Friday.

Lumberton girls win on late run

After leading by 13 points after three quarters against Purnell Swett, things got a bit too close for the Lumberton girls basketball team.

The Rams went on an 8-2 run behind post play from Alysa Hunt and were within striking distance.

“I told em to spread it and go to motion,” said Lumberton coach Danny Graham.

The Pirates took the idea and ran with it, getting an 8-0 run in less than a minute to distance the teams as Lumberton (12-6, 3-2) put the finishing touches on a 59-42 win.

The run started with a 3-point play off a layup and free throw by Mariah Locklear that made it 45-34. A layup by Randi Bullard extended it and Locklear then did it again with another layup and free throw combo to go up 50-34.

The two provided the base of the Pirates’ late offense. Bullard had a team-high 15 points, 11 of which came in the second half. Locklear had 14, including 10 in the fourth quarter.

Lumberton limited Swett’s scoring and went up 28-17 at halftime, getting six points each from Alexis Andrews, Jasmine McBride and Azaya Graham in the first half.

Hunt was the only Ram (5-10, 0-5) to finish in double figures, scoring 17 points, including 12 of her team’s 16 in the fourth quarter.

Red Springs sweeps South Columbus

RED SPRINGS — Rocio Pena found her touch from the arc, hitting five 3-pointers as the Red Springs girls (9-9, 7-2) beat South Columbus 49-20.

Pena finished with 19 points, complementing the work of Robyn McPhaul, who had 17 points, six rebounds, four assists and seven steals. The Red Devil defense never allowed more than six points in a quarter.

It was the team’s fourth straight win and keeps Red Springs in second place in the conference standings.

The Red Springs boys also won 61-56 over South Columbus in a back-and-forth contest.

The Red Devils (13-5, 8-1) trailed at the end of the first and third quarters, but led at both halftime and the end of the game, outscoring the Stallions 21-12 in the fourth. Jared Foster led the Red Devils with 18 points. Jamison Baker had 16 and Tavion Atkinson had 15.

The Red Springs boys are second in the conference and will play at conference leader Fairmont tonight.

In other area games, St. Pauls was swept by Whiteville. The boys (3-14, 2-7) lost 80-36 and the girls (7-11, 5-4) lost 50-23. South Robeson was swept by East Columbus. The Mustang boys (2-12, 0-8) lost 65-46, the girls (4-9, 4-4) lost 53-23.

Box scores:

BOYS

Lumberton 78, Purnell Swett 56

Lumberton 22 22 20 14 — 78

Purnell Swett 16 17 8 13 — 56

LUMBERTON — Demetri Sheridan 27, Travis Suggs 13, Justice Sampson 11, Floyd 7, Grissett 4, Edwards 4, Everette 3, Gaddy 2, Love 2, Jones 2, Cromartie 1.

PURNELL SWETT — Tyler Maynor 15, Kendrick Purdie 15, Thristan Lowry 8, Brooks 5, Anderson 5, J. Locklear 4, Chavis 4.

3-pointers — L: Sampson 3, Floyd, Everette; PS: Maynor 2, Purdie 2, Anderson, Brooks.

Records — Lumberton 9-9, 2-3; Purnell Swett 3-11, 1-4.

GIRLS

Lumberton 59, Purnell Swett 42

Lumberton 16 12 11 20 — 59

Purnell Swett 7 10 9 16 — 42

LUMBERTON — Randi Bullard 15, Mariah Locklear 14, Jasmine McBride 10, Graham 8, Andrews 7, Grand 3, Faulkner 2.

PURNELL SWETT — Alysa Hunt 17, M. Lowry 8, B. Locklear 7, T. Locklear 3, Chavis 2, Epps 2, E. Locklear 1.

3-pointers — L: Graham, Locklear ; PS: T. Locklear.

Records — Lumberton 12-6, 3-2; Purnell Swett 5-10, 0-5.