After trailing by as many as 13 points in the opening half, Northland (OH) scored a 71-70 come-from-behind victory over East Carteret (NC) in the consolation bracket on day two of the 2014 Beach Ball Classic at the Myrtle Beach (SC) Convention Center.
In the opening half, East Carteret (7-2; Beaufort, NC) scored 16 of the game’s first 20 points to open a 16-4 advantage with 10:49 remaining on the clock. The Mariners took their largest lead of the game on a pair of free throws by Trevor Willis with 5:00 remaining in the first half that gave East Carteret a 31-18 lead. Northland (4-2; Columbus, OH) closed the half by connecting on six of its last eight shots from the field and pulled to within just one point at 35-34 on a free throw by Andy Breckenridge with 12 seconds on the clock. Jacque Brown drove the length of the court and connected on a jumper just outside of the paint at the buzzer for a 37-34 East Carteret lead at the half.
Northland scored the first seven points to grab a 41-37 advantage just 2:50 into the second half. The teams would swap the lead eight times over the next 10 minutes before East Carteret appeared to have the contest in hand as the Vikings built a five point lead of 67-62 on a pair of free throws by Brown. Seth Towns connected on one of two free throws for Northland to start a 6-0 run that would give the Vikings a 68-67 lead with just 37 seconds on the clock. During the run, Towns scored four straight points before Doug Taylor’s dunk regained the lead for Northland.
Brown responded for East Carteret just 10 seconds later with a long 3-point basket that gave the Mariners a 70-68 advantage. Following a timeout, Towns handled the ball out front and drove to the basket with time winding down. Towns connected on an off-balance jumper in the lane and was fouled by Ty Simmons. Towns connected on what would prove to be the game winning free throw as part of the three-point play with three seconds to play. Jack Garrison missed a 3-point basket at the buzzer to end the contest.
Northland was led by Doug Taylor’s 17 points and 16 rebounds. DezJuan Wright added 16 points for the Vikings while Towns and DJ Tyre added 15 and 12 points, respectively.
East Carteret was led by Brown’s 32 points as he connected on 11-of-11 from the free throw line.
