North Duplin sophomore forward Eva Quintanilla, right, attempts to block a shot by Jones Senior’s Lynn King during first-half action of their game in Calypso on Tuesday evening.|(Rudy Coggins/mountolivetribune.com)
Freshman Trashawn Ruffin eyes the basket during second-half play against Jones Senior on Tuesday.|(Rudy Coggins/mountolivetribune.com)
North Duplin freshman guard Lilly Fulghum, 22, works her way around a Jones Senior defender on the baseline.|(Rudy Coggins/mountolivetribune.com)
North Duplin senior Richard Nobles boxes out a Jones Senior defender during a free throw attempt Tuesday evening.|(Rudy Coggins/mountolivetribune.com)
CALYPSO — North Duplin hasn’t sampled the sweet nectar from a season-opening victory since 2013 — a stretch of more than 3,100 calendar days.
That changed Tuesday evening.
Senior guard Cole Beavers pumped in 17 points as the Rebels demolished Jones Senior, 60-35. It was North’s first season-opening triumph since Dec. 13, 2013, when it hammered Lejeune by 30 points.
“That’s the best I’ve seen a North Duplin team play in a while,” second-year Rebels head coach Jeff Byrd said. “I don’t think we played that good last year the whole year. They were into it … played together, shared the ball and they played hard.
“We looked like we were enjoying it out there.”
On the girls’ side, North Duplin raced to a 19-0 lead and throttled Jones Senior, 66-13. The Rebels extended win streaks on their home court (11 straight) and regular-season play (10).
Back to the boys.
North Duplin trailed early, but seized command just before halftime.
Defense fueled an offense that turned a two-possession deficit into a nine-point advantage at the break. The tenacious effort sparked a 9-0 surge early in the third that deflated the Trojans.
“I thought defense set the tone,” Byrd said. “We threw a new defense in that we’ve been working on and adjusted to it pretty well. I think we shot the ball well.”
The Trojans (1-1 overall) climbed to 39-27 on two 3-pointers and an open-court layup, but could get no closer. The Rebels led 41-27 after three quarters and built on that advantage throughout the final period.
Junior James Ward notched nine points, while returning starter Eli Morrisey dropped in eight. Freshman reserve Trashawn Ruffin and Southern Wayne transfer Richard Nobles supplied six points apiece.
Girls
North Duplin’s Tateyawna Faison easily won the opening tip, but watched her teammates throw the ball away in transition.
Head coach John Oliver couldn’t believe the miscue.His worries didn’t last long.
With four returning starters back, the Rebels used their defense as their offensive weapon and overwhelmed the Trojans early. They also claimed 12 second-chance points on offensive rebounds.
Seven ND players scored in the opening half.
“Our press and defense pleased me,” Oliver said. “We got the ball in places like we wanted to [but] I don’t think we got it as much on the inside as I wanted to because Tateyawna was open and they just didn’t give it to her.
“When she gets it, she drops down and is gone to the basket.”
Faison notched eight points and five rebounds.
The backcourt tandem of East Carolina verbal commit Reece Outlaw and Addy Higginbotham did their usual damage. Outlaw provided a game-high 20 points, five assists, seven steals and four rebounds. Higginbotham delivered 16 points, seven assists and four steals.
Freshmen Lily Brothus and Lilly Fulghum knocked down eight and seven points, respectively.
North Duplin takes a six-day break before entertaining Lejeune on Nov. 29.
