ROWLAND — When South Robeson coach Ryan Bullard handed Cameron Werrell a commemorative basketball to celebrate his induction into the school’s 1,000-point club ahead of the last home game on Tuesday, the senior flashed a wide grin and proudly hoisted it in the air.
At the conclusion of the team’s come-from-behind, 69-68 win over Three Rivers Conference opponent East Bladen, Werrell showed a contrasting emotion as he dropped to his knees and embraced the court he’s owned during his high school career with tearful eyes.
“Knowing it was my last home game…I just had to leave it all out there,” said Werrell who finished with a game-high 31 points and 10 rebounds.
“As soon as I hit them free throws, I said, ‘That was it’ and it just hit me then. I had to get on my knees one more time on that hardwood floor.”
Despite an eight-point deficit at the end of the third quarter and trailing by as many as six points in the latter stages of the fourth, Werrell powered a late surge and dropped in the Mustangs final eight points.
With 8.7 seconds to go, Werrell converted a layup, off a nicely drawn inbound play that gave the team its first lead, 67-66, since early in the third period. The next trip down, he nailed a pair of foul shots that pushed the advantage to 69-66 with just five seconds remaining.
“Most of our games been close. We’ve been down and had to come back, so we knew that we had to fight,” Werrell said. “Plus, it’s senior night, the seniors had to step up.”
Coming into the matchup, East Bladen (3-20, 3-14 TRC) had lost nine straight, but the group’s last victory had come at the hands of the Mustangs in Elizabethtown. History looked to have repeated itself in the third period, as the Eagles hit five 3-pointers to overcome a three-point halftime deficit.
Darrell Banks, finished with a team-high 27 points, including a pair of triples in the period. He sank a shot from downtown with just over two minutes left that gave the team a 47-41 lead. Fellow guard Freddy Wooten ended with 20 points and knocked down two 3-pointers of his own in the quarter as the Eagles went up by as much as 11 points in the waning moments of the frame.
Mustangs senior Daniel Murray added 21 points and his back-to-back layups to close the third, cut the deficit below double-digits, 57-49, heading into the fourth.
“He did his job tonight, played like he was supposed to and scored the rock,” Werrell said of Murray.
Murray keyed a crucial 8-0 spurt in the opening minutes of the fourth period. His triple, just over three minutes into the quarter, brought the lead under double-digits again, 63-56. And his pair of free throws halfway through the frame cut the deficit to one-possession, 63-60.
Bullard appreciated the heart of his experienced players, who played extended minutes due to the absence of key reserves.
“The seniors, man, it was just emotional. My big guy was in tears…and it was tough to keep them together there at the end, but they were able to get through those last few seconds,” he said. ”I’m just so happy for these guys in the last home game, to win it, we really needed that.”
South Robeson (12-10, 9-8 TRC) finishes the regular season at conference rival Fairmont on Friday in a matchup that will impact seedings in the league tournament, and possibly decide a state playoff berth.
Lady Mustangs drop eighth straight in loss to perfect East Bladen
The South Robeson girls basketball team was at full strength for its Three Rivers Conference battle with league-leading East Bladen on Tuesday, after getting back key players that were suspended due to their participation in a scuffle on Jan. 18.
A full roster wasn’t enough to overcome the widespread attack of the conference’s best as the Lady Eagles breezed to a 75-28 victory, remaining undefeated in league play.
East Bladen (23-1, 18-0 TRC) was led by Erica McKoy who finished with a game-high 24 points. Patience Ward added 14 points and University of North Carolina at Pembroke signee Ja’Tyra Moore-Peterson scored 10.
Lady Mustangs (9-13, 5-12 TRC) senior Nytia Lewis collected another double-double in her final home game, 17 points, 13 rebounds and added five blocks to her conference-leading total.
