Lydia Rivers crammed a week’s worth of production into four quarters and helped keep the Kinston girls basketball team unbeaten in the Eastern Plains 2A Conference.
Rivers, a sophomore center, scored 24 points, grabbed 14 rebounds, blocked six shots, collected four steals and handed out two assists as the Vikings overcame a slow start to hammer Wilson Beddingfield 58-39 Tuesday at Viking Gym.
The Viking boys also remained undefeated in the league with a convincing 65-35 victory.
But it was Rivers who was a model of consistency and whose star shone the brightest on this night.
She connected on 12 of 15 field goal attempts, including seven in a row at one point. Ten of her points and eight rebounds came in the opening half and then she added 14 points and six rebounds after intermission.
At times it seemed like she was everywhere at once on both ends of the floor.
“I tried to be more aggressive tonight,” Rivers said. “I’m just glad I was able to help my team win.”
She was outstanding but received plenty of help.
Anshonee Addison scored 10 points, six on back-to-back treys that spurred Kinston to a 12-0 run in the second quarter.
The Vikings (15-4, 8-0) trailed 15-12 at the time then proceeded to outscore the Bruins (6-10, 5-3) 36-10 over a 15-minute stretch spanning the second and third periods.
Kinston’s Brittany Drumgoole scored just three points but hauled down 12 rebounds and dished out nine assists, five to Rivers.
“My teammates did a great job of getting me the ball where I could score,” Rivers said. “I couldn’t have done it without them.”
KINSTON 65, BEDDINGFIELD 35
The Kinston boys used the deadly combination of a suffocating defense and an efficient offense to overwhelm Beddingfield.
“We played well,” Kinston coach Perry Tyndall said. “There are always areas in which we can improve, but tonight was just a solid overall effort.”
After falling behind 9-8 as the Bruins (8-0, 4-4) drilled their first three attempts from 3-point range, Kinston (16-2, 8-0) tightened the screws and embarked on a 30-6 spurt that carried into the locker room at halftime.
“We did a poor job of identifying their shooters in the first few minutes and I think it woke us up,” Tyndall said. “We were much more active after that and our rotations were much better.”
Kinston forced 25 turnovers, 18 in the opening half. Both teams substituted freely in a wide open second half.
Offensively, the Vikings buried 14 of 20 shots from the floor in the first half, 70 percent. The percentage dropped with the shifting personnel after the break.
“When we knock down shots and play good defense, we’re going to be successful,” Tyndall said. “Tonight was one of those times.”
Brandon Ingram led Kinston with 14 points and was a perfect 6-of-6 from the floor. Darnell Dunn finished with 12 points and also didn’t miss any of his four field goal attempts or four free throws.
Andrew Lopez added 10 points while Josh Dawson contributed six points and 10 assists.
Dawson, Lopez, and Ingram didn’t play in the fourth quarter.
Kinston will look to remain undefeated in the conference Friday when they visit Farmville Central, which is tied for second in the league in the loss column with North Pitt.
GIRLS
Beddingfield 13 4 8 14—39
Kinston 10 13 25 10—58
BRUINS (6-10, 5-3) — DeNisa Hooker 10, Jones 7, Anderson 6, Evans 6, Miles 4, Ellis 2, Edward 2, Harris 2, Gear, Farmer, Stevens, Jenkins.
VIKINGS (15-4, 8-0) — Lydia Rivers 24, Anshonee Addison 10, Lofton 9, Clark 5, Williams 5, Drumgoole 3, Harper 2, Vermillion, Tice, Thi.
BOYS
Beddingfield 11 4 12 8—35
Kinston 16 22 20 7—65
BRUINS (8-8, 4-4) — Williams 8, Collins 6, Hooks 4, Peterson 3, Houston 3, Harris 3, Harper 2, Eatmon 2, Davis 2, Speight 2, Roberson, Dunn, Honey.
VIKINGS (16-2, 8-0) — Brandon Ingram 14, Darrell Dunn 12, Andrew Lopez 10, Keyes 9, Dawson 6, Joyner 5, Williams 3, Taylor 2, Ham 2, White 2, Hart, Jones, Rouse, Canady.