Hobbton tops North Duplin

The Hobbton Wildcats JV and varsity boys picked up good wins from Duplin County rival North Duplin Tuesday night. The finals were 59-50 for the JV and 53-44 for the varsity. The Lady Cats went down in defeat after playing a close first quarter. The final was 59-30, North Duplin.

Girls

The Lady Wildcats got off to a good start holding a slim two point lead at 11-9 after the first quarter. The Lady Rebels hit their stride in the second quarter scoring 21 points while Hobbton only got four giving the Rebels a 30-15 lead at the break.

The Lady Rebels continued to score getting 18 points in the third quarter holding the Wildcats to six points for a 48-21 lead. In the fourth quarter, North Duplin was playing the bench and only scored 11 points. The Lady Wildcats scored nine for the 59-30 Rebel win.

Three Wildcats scored all the points with Ciara Bryant getting 11 points, Gracie Jones had 10 points and Isabell Hernandez had seven.

Reece Outlaw led the Lady Rebels with 29 points. Abby Higginbotham followed with 13 points and Meghan Martin had eight points.

Boys

In the night cap, the Wildcats continued their inspired play coming off a big win over Union. They took that momentum with them to get a big win over the Rebels.

The Wildcats jumped out to a 1-0 lead early in the first quarter. The led 15-8 after the first quarter. The picked up 18 points in the second quarter while the Rebels got six. The halftime score was 33-14, Hobbton.

The Wildcats continued to dominate the game in the second half. They scored 14 points in the third quarter allowing four for the Rebels. In the final frame, Hobbton coach Ayden Tart started playing some of the subs and allowed the Rebels to cut the lead but still maintained control of the game. The Rebels scored 26 points in the fourth while the Wildcats scored six. The final was 53-44 Wildcats.

The Wildcats had two players in double figures. Colby Weeks had 12 points with four steals and four assists, Bennett Darden had 10 points. Ashwad Wynn, Jaquan Chancy and Riley Brewington had seven points each.

For the Rebels, Ashton Lawton led with 13 points. Levi George had 11 points.

“We came out great energy and a great effort,” commented Hobbton coach Tart. “We look forward to starting over with this conference play with Rosewood Friday. I hope this game brings some momentum into Friday’s game.”

JV

In a tough, physical game that was tied 10 times, the Wildcat JV team held on for the win. They were ties with the Rebels 11 -11 after the first quarter. Being evenly matched, the Rebels out scored the Wildcats 14-12 in the second quarter to take a 25-23 advantage to the locker room at half time.

In the third quarter, the Wildcats and the Rebels were tied up four times, all which took place midway the third quarter. The Rebels were up 37-34 at the end of the quarter. Hobbton picked up 25 points in the final frame as the Rebels could only manage 13 points, final score 59-50, Wildcats win.

For the Wildcats Juelz Hankins led the scoring effort with 24 points. John Wilkes finished with 11 points, Joe Corbett finished with 10 points and Dai’vian Murrell had nine points.

Branson Martin led the Rebel scoring with 17 points. T. Collins and Luke Kelly hand eight points each. Rahmenn Gates had six and Anthony Kornegay finished with five

The Wildcat boys are 6-9 overall 3-2 in the conference. The Lady Wildcats are 1-13 overall and 1-4 in the conference.

The Wildcats host Rosewood Friday.