South Lenoir boys edge East Duplin 56-47, stay perfect in conference
South Lenoir boys edge East Duplin 56-47, stay perfect in conference
South Lenoir defended its home floor Tuesday night, pulling away in the second half to defeat East Duplin 56-47 in a key conference matchup that featured the league’s top two teams.
The win moves the Blue Devils to 11-6 overall and 5-0 in conference play. East Duplin entered the night 3-1 in conference and sitting in second place, making the matchup a de facto game for first place in the standings.
After a slow, defensive first half, South Lenoir found its rhythm after the break and outscored East Duplin 37-32 in the second half to secure the win.
Junior Jaylyn Mills led all scorers with 20 points and added 10 rebounds, delivering another standout performance. His biggest stretch came in the third quarter, when he scored eight points in quick succession to give South Lenoir momentum coming out of halftime.
Both teams struggled offensively early as each packed the paint with zone defenses. South Lenoir managed just 18 points in the first half, while East Duplin totaled 15.
Gavin Brock finished with 11 points, including several timely fast-break baskets in the fourth quarter that helped South Lenoir maintain separation. Amarie Edwards added 10 points, while Christian Wooten chipped in seven.
East Duplin leaned heavily on 6-foot-7 center Dominic Hall, whose length impacted both ends of the floor. Hall scored 14 points and was a consistent presence around the basket.
Mills acknowledged the challenge of facing Hall after the game.
“He was tough, but you got put a body against him,” Mills said.
With the win, South Lenoir extended its win streak to four games and improved to 5-0 in conference play — a milestone Mills said stands out.
“I don’t remember the last time South Lenoir was 5-0 in conference, it’s pretty cool,” he said.
The victory was also notable historically, as it marked just South Lenoir’s second win over East Duplin in the past nine meetings.
South Lenoir has five regular-season games remaining and will be back in action tomorrow night on the road at Heide Trask. The Blue Devils won the first meeting between the two teams at the buzzer, capped by a deep three-pointer from Mills.
