1-16-22 roundup: High school basketball, Pro basketball, Legion baseball
By Richard Walker
At the halfway point of most high school conference basketball play, several teams from Cleveland, Gaston and Lincoln counties are atop their respective league standings or are in title contention.
Here’s a look at those races:
Big South 3A Conference boys – Kings Mountain (8-5, 5-0) and Crest (8-2, 3-0) are the only remaining league unbeatens and are slated to meet on Tuesday at Kings Mountain. Cramer (12-1, 3-1) recently became the 12th Gaston County school to start 10-0 or better and has only lost to Kings Mountain.
Kings Mountain has been led by senior Zeke Cannedy, who recently had two of the six highest single-game scoring efforts in Cleveland County history with 55 points against Gaston Day on Dec. 30, 2021 and 48 against South Point on Jan. 7, 2022.
Crest senior Mari Adams is averaging 17.7 points, 6.4 rebounds and 5.8 assists and Cramer senior Will Kelly is averaging 24.2 points, 8.5 rebounds and 4.2 assists.
Kings Mountain seeks its fourth league title in seven seasons, Crest seeks its first back-to-back league titles in school history since 1977 and 1978 and Cramer has never won a league championship.
Big South 3A Conference girls – Kings Mountain (9-2, 6-0) is atop the league and seeks the school’s third championship all-time and second in three years. Ashbrook (8-5, 4-1), which has won five of the last six league titles, and Huss (7-3, 3-1) are close behind.
Kings Mountain is led by senior Saniya Wilson (22.3 points, 6.8 rebounds, 4.8 assists).
Southern Piedmont 1A/2A boys – Despite a late start to its season due to its state football title run, Shelby (6-3, 4-0) is atop the league standings behind a balanced attack that includes sophomores Drew Hollifield and Izay Bridges.
Thomas Jefferson (11-2, 2-0) is the only other league unbeaten and will host Shelby Jan. 31 and visit Shelby on Feb. 8.
Southern Piedmont 1A/2A girls – Coming off its historic unbeaten state title season last year, Shelby scheduled tougher but is expected to roll through league play. The Golden Lions (7-2, 4-0) are led by senior Kate Hollifield (17.5 points) and juniors Maraya Pass (14.8) and Ally Hollifield (10.4).
Western Foothills 3A boys – East Lincoln (14-2, 6-0) is atop the league standings and is slated to host second-place Hickory (14-1, 5-1) on Friday. Drew Bean (15.5 points) leads the Mustangs, who are seeking their fifth league title in eight seasons and first since 2019.
Western Foothills 3A girls – East Lincoln (13-2, 5-0) is in first place but has Foard (4-1), Hickory (3-1) and St. Stephens (3-1) close behind. The Mustangs, who last won a league title in 2017, are led by senior Taliyah Thomas (11.1 points) and juniors Madison Self (11.7 points) and Ginny Overbay (10.9 points).
Catawba Valley 2A boys – Lincolnton (6-9, 4-1) trails league-leading West Caldwell (6-0) and the Wolves seek their first conference title since 2017.
Catawba Shores 1A/2A boys – A challenging non-league schedule has helped Lincoln Charter (12-4, 3-0) on its path to an eighth straight league title. J.J. Moore (19.3 points) leads the Eagles.
Catawba Shores 1A/2A girls – Lincoln Charter (11-6, 3-0) hosts the only other league-unbeaten Community School of Davidson (2-0) on Tuesday as the Eagles seek to win their seventh league title in nine seasons and fifth in a row.
Lincoln Charter has been led by senior Lauren Horton (15.9 points) and junior Maddie Lusk (14.2 points).
Metrolina NCISAA boys – Gaston Day (17-1, 6-0) has won 13 straight since a late November loss to Charlotte’s United Faith Christian.
The Spartans, who have been led by senior Chris Britt and juniors Callum Richard, Evan Montanari and Collin Fayed, have upcoming tests against Gaston Christian (8-9, 3-2) and SouthLake Christian (14-8, 3-1).
Gaston Christian is led by junior Isaiah Tate (16.6 points) and sophomore Jahseem Felton (15.8 points).
Here are standings for Cleveland, Gaston and Lincoln counties through Jan. 15:
BIG SOUTH 3A
(Boys)
Kings Mountain 5-0, 8-5
Crest 3-0, 8-2
Cramer 3-1, 12-1
Ashbrook 2-3, 3-10
South Point 2-4, 6-9
Forestview 1-1, 3-6
Huss 1-3, 4-8
North Gaston 0-5, 3-12
(Girls)
Kings Mountain 6-0, 9-2
Ashbrook 4-1, 8-5
Huss 3-1, 7-3
Crest 2-2, 5-7
South Point 2-3, 5-8
North Gaston 1-4, 5-10
Cramer 0-3, 2-10
Forestview 0-4, 0-11
SOUTHERN PIEDMONT 1A/2A
(Boys)
Shelby 4-0, 6-3
Thomas Jefferson 2-0, 11-2
Bessemer City 2-1, 9-3
Burns 2-3, 3-11
Cherryville 2-3, 10-4
East Gaston 1-2, 7-6
Highland Tech 0-4, 2-10
(Girls)
Shelby 4-0, 7-2
Thomas Jefferson 2-0, 4-7
East Gaston 1-2, 7-6
Bessemer City 2-1, 7-5
Burns 3-2, 4-10
Highland Tech 0-4, 2-10
Cherryville 1-4, 2-12
OTHERS
(Boys)
Piedmont CC 1-3, 2-9
East Lincoln 6-0, 14-2
North Lincoln 2-3, 8-6
Lincolnton 4-1, 6-9
West Lincoln 2-3, 5-10
Lincoln Charter 3-0, 12-4
Mtn Isl Charter 0-2, 5-10
Gaston Christian 3-2, 8-9
Gaston Day 6-0, 17-1
(Girls)
Piedmont CC 1-0, 4-5
East Lincoln 5-0, 13-2
North Lincoln 0-5, 2-12
Lincolnton 0-4, 4-10
West Lincoln 1-3, 7-9
Lincoln Charter 3-0, 11-6
Mtn Isl Charter 0-2, 0-5
Gaston Christian 1-3, 1-6
Gaston Day 2-5, 2-10
This week’s games:
(Tuesday)
Ashbrook at Huss
Crest at Kings Mountain
Forestview at Cramer
North Gaston at South Point
Cherryville at East Gaston
Shelby at Bessemer City
Thomas Jefferson at Burns
Apprentice Academy at Piedmont CC
East Lincoln at North Lincoln
Lincolnton at West Lincoln
Gaston Day at Gaston Christian
Community School of Davidson at Lincoln Charter
Langtree Charter at Mountain Island Charter
(Wednesday)
Forestview at Cuthbertson
Highland Tech at Ashbrook
South Point at East Gaston
(Thursday)
Bessemer City at Thomas Jefferson
(Friday)
Ashbrook at Crest
Huss at Kings Mountain
North Gaston at Forestview
South Point at Cramer
Cherryville at Thomas Jefferson
Highland Tech at East Gaston
Shelby at Burns
Piedmont CC at Bradford Prep
Hickory at East Lincoln
Statesville at North Lincoln
Bunker Hill at Lincolnton
West Lincoln at Bandys
Metrolina Christian at Gaston Day
SouthLake Christian at Gaston Christian
Lincoln Charter at Pine Lake Prep
Christ the King at Mountain Island Charter
(Saturday)
Cramer at Kings Mountain
Huss at Crest
Shelby at East Rutherford
Pro basketball
The Charlotte Hornets play on Martin Luther King, Jr., for the 16th time in their history on Monday when they visit the New York Knicks at 1 p.m.
The Hornets, who hosted a MLK game from 2005 to 2010, from 2012 to 2016 and again in 2020, are 5-10 all-time in such games. That includes 4-8 at home and 1-2 on the road.
Here is the Charlotte Hornets’ full regular season schedule (with results):
OCTOBER
Wed. 20 INDIANA (W 123-122)
Fri. 22 at Cleveland (W 123-112)
Sun. 24 at Brooklyn (W 111-95)
Mon. 25 BOSTON (L 129-140, OT)
Wed. 27 at Orlando (W 120-111)
Fri. 29 at Miami (L 99-114)
Sun. 31 PORTLAND (W 125-113)
NOVEMBER
Mon. 1 CLEVELAND (L 110-113)
Wed. 3 at Golden State (L 92-114)
Fri. 5 at Sacramento (L 110-140)
Sun. 7 at LA Clippers (L 106-120)
Mon. 8 at L.A. Lakers (L 123-126, OT)
Wed. 10 at Memphis (W 118-108)
Fri. 12 NEW YORK (W 104-96)
Sun. 14 GOLDEN STATE (W 106-102)
Wed. 17 WASHINGTON (W 97-87)
Fri. 19 INDIANA (W 121-118)
Sat. 20 at Atlanta (L 105-115)
Mon. 22 at Washington (W 109-103)
Wed. 24 at Orlando (W 108-99)
Fri. 26 MINNESOTA (W 133-115)
Sat. 27 at Houston (L 143-146, OT)
Mon. 29 at Chicago (L 119-133)
DECEMBER
Wed. 1 at Milwaukee (L 125-127)
Sun. 5 at Atlanta (W 130-127)
Mon. 6 PHILADELPHIA (L 124-127, OT)
Wed. 8 PHILADELPHIA (L 106-110)
Fri. 10 SACRAMENTO (W 124-123)
Mon. 13 at Dallas (L 96-120)
Wed. 15 at San Antonio (W 131-115)
Fri. 17 at Portland (L 116-125)
Sun. 19 at Phoenix (L 106-137)
Mon. 20 at Utah (L 102-112)
Thu. 23 at Denver (W 115-107)
Mon. 27 HOUSTON (W 123-99)
Wed. 29 at Indiana (W 116-108)
JANUARY
Sun. 2 PHOENIX (L 99-133)
Mon. 3 at Washington (L 121-124)
Wed. 5 DETROIT (W 140-111)
Sat. 8 MILWAUKEE (W 114-106)
Mon. 10 MILWAUKEE (W 103-99)
Wed. 12 at Philadelphia (W 109-98)
Fri. 14 ORLANDO (L 109-116)
Mon. 17 at New York 1:00
Wed. 19 at Boston 7:30
Fri. 21 OKLAHOMA CITY 7:00
Sun. 23 ATLANTA 7:00
Tue. 25 at Toronto 7:00
Wed. 26 at Indiana 7:00
Fri. 28 L.A. LAKERS 7:00
Sun. 30 LA CLIPPERS 1:00
FEBRUARY
Wed. 2 at Boston 7:30
Fri. 4 CLEVELAND 7:00
Sat. 5 MIAMI 7:00
Mon. 7 TORONTO 7:00
Wed. 9 CHICAGO 7:30
Fri. 11 at Detroit 7:00
Sat. 12 MEMPHIS 7:00
Tue. 15 at Minnesota 8:00
Thu. 17 MIAMI 7:00
Fri. 25 TORONTO 7:00
Sun. 27 DETROIT 7:00
Mon. 28 at Milwaukee 8:00
MARCH
Wed. 2 at Cleveland 7:00
Sat. 5 SAN ANTONIO 7:00
Tue. 8 BROOKLYN 7:00
Wed. 9 BOSTON 7:00
Fri. 11 at New Orleans 8:00
Mon. 14 at Oklahoma City 8:00
Wed. 16 ATLANTA 7:00
Sat. 19 DALLAS 7:00
Mon. 21 NEW ORLEANS 7:00
Wed. 23 NEW YORK 7:00
Fri. 25 UTAH 7:00
Sun. 27 at Brooklyn 7:30
Mon. 28 DENVER 7:00
Wed. 30 at New York 7:30
APRIL
Sat. 2 at Philadelphia 12:30
Tue. 5 at Miami 7:30
Thu. 7 ORLANDO 7:00
Fri. 8 at Chicago 8:00
Sun. 10 WASHINGTON TBD
American Legion baseball
The 2022 North Carolina American Legion Baseball Hall of Fame ceremony inducting the 2021 class will be held on Saturday, March 5 at 6:30 p.m. at the Cherryville Post 100 Legion hut. Tickets are $10. Call Jerry Hudson (704-460-4855), Tony Robinson (980-329-7200), Mike Robinson (704-473-9310), Ned Yates (704-618-3644), Jill Pueit (704-842-4804) or Danny Eaker (704-435-2717) to reserve your seat. The inductees will be Mike Ellis of Ahoskie Post 102, Sam Homesley of Cherryville Post 100, Mike Robinson of Cherryville Post 100 and Jerald D. Rollins of Greenville Post 39.