BAYBORO – Leading by three with 5.6 seconds remaining, the Pamlico Hurricanes committed a foul on a 3-point basket.
Ayden-Grifton's Keishmand Taylor, who connected on his first nine free throw attempts, missed his first shot but hit the next two.
Josiah Simmons iced the game with a pair of foul shots, lifting Pamlico to a 56-53 win over visiting Ayden-Grifton Wednesday in a rematch of last year's 1A third-round playoff game.
“It was pressure time, and (Taylor) missed the first one but made the next two,” said Ayden-Grifton coach John Moye. “I thought we were going to get a steal at the end, but we didn't get it. The guy (Simmons) knocked down the free throw to end it.”
Simmons led three Hurricanes in double-figures with 15 points. Arthur Randall tossed in 13 points and pulled down 11 rebounds, Bradley Bennett scored 14 points and D.J. Lewis added nine points.
Pamlico drained four first-quarter 3-pointers to take a 21-8 lead. Ayden-Grifton cut its deficit to 29-21 at halftime and got within three points late in the third quarter.
“It confirms some things we talked about before the game. This is our fifth game and we are trying to find ourselves with the football players coming out late,” Pamlico coach Earl Sadler said. “One of the things we talked about was, ‘we are a team.’ We have some good basketball players, but they need each other.
“When they played together, we looked really (good).”
Lewis hit a step-back jumper to begin the final quarter. Pamlico's senior guard then stole the ball and went the other way for a layup, pushing the Hurricanes' lead to 44-37.
Ayden-Grifton charged back to take its first lead of the game, 49-48, when Taylor converted on a pair of free throws with 3:05 remaining.
Pamlico regained the lead on Cameron Moore's putback, but Ayden-Grifton's Will Gardner's answer handed the Chargers a 51-50 advantage.
The Hurricanes responded with a steal and a layup from Simmons and two free throws by Randall.
Pamlico missed five free throws down the stretch, but it was Ayden-Grifton who missed the biggest one with five seconds to go.
“That's been one of our weaknesses. We've been shooting about 50 percent this year and there is no excuse for it,” Sadler said. “It's about concentration and reps, just like hitting a baseball or hitting a golf ball.”
Khalif Harper scored 16 points to lead the Chargers and Taylor scored 13.
Pamlico won on the glass, 36-22.
“They knocked us on our heels to start the game off,” Moye said. “I don't think they missed a shot to start the game. We got a couple defensive stops in the second quarter, and I thought we started chipping away right before halftime.”
Ayden-Grifton plays North Edgecombe Tuesday, as Pamlico plays host to Riverside.
Pamlico girls hangs on top Ayden-Grifton
BAYBORO – The Pamlico Hurricanes made up for a lackluster third quarter with a dominant final period.
Alazia Whitfield scored 11 points and ripped down 15 rebounds as Pamlico rallied to beat Ayden-Grifton, 43-36, in Bayboro Wednesday night.
“It was very sloppy, especially in the third quarter,” Pamlico coach April Rose said. “Alazia stepped up on defense in the third and fourth quarter. She got a few steals and rebounds that we needed.”
Laichelle Sparrow contributed 10 points and 10 boards and Alexis Hawkins-Pool netted 10 points for Pamlico who improves to 4-2 on the season.
The Hurricanes seemed to be in control early after jumping out to a 12-1 lead. They built an 18-10 advantage after one quarter, and extended it to 27-18 at halftime.
Then some sloppy play by the Hurricanes, and some momentum taken by the Chargers, Ayden-Grifton bounced back to take its first lead, 28-27, following a basket by Alexsius Dixon.
Ayden-Grifton (1-5) won the third quarter, 14-4, to take a one-point edge after three quarters.
Pamlico picked up its play over the final eight minutes, out-scoring the Chargers, 12-4. Whitfield dished out three assists in the final frame and Pool and Sparrow both had four points.
“We started off great, put the pressure on and took it to them,” Rose said. “We were trying to play aggressively, and the third quarter, we let them out-rebound us and take over.”
Pamlico dominated the rebounding edge, 41-29, but turned the ball over 20 times. Ayden-Grifton gave the ball away 25 times.
Destiny Dixon and Jasmeane Johnson led the Chargers with 12 points apiece and Alexsius Dixon contributed nine points and seven rebounds. Tauja Worthington had a team-high eight rebounds.
Pamlico plays host to Riverside on Tuesday. Ayden-Grifton plays North Edgecombe.
Adam Thompson can be contacted at 252-635-5669 or at Adam.Thompson@newbernsj.com. Follow Adam on Twitter @Adam_matic.
Boys
Ayden-Grifton 8 13 16 16 – 53
Pamlico 21 8 11 16 – 56
AG scoring: Trey Johnson 4, Khalif Harper 16, Jahkevus Edwards 6, Keishmand Taylor 13, Rayquan Squires 5, Raque Dixon 1, Phe'bion Joyner 5, Fred Preston 2, Will Gardner 4.
Pamlico scoring: Arthur Randall 13, Josiah Simmons 15, D.J. Lewis 9, Bradley Bennett 14, Cameron Moore 2.
Girls
Ayden-Grifton 10 8 14 4 – 36
Pamlico 18 9 4 12 – 43
AG scoring: Tauja Worthington 3, Destiny Dixon 12, Jasmeane Johnson 12, Alexsius Dixon 9.
Pamlico scoring: Briana Jones 4, Laichelle Sparrow 10, Alazia Whitfield 11, Leetasia Midgette 2, Roeshonda Lee 4, Alexis Hawkins-Pool 10, Zyaja Mattocks 2.