Dec 27, 2011
HighSchoolOT.com Holiday Invitational
Final: The Chapel Hill Tigers hammered Clayton 64-42 to advance to round two of the 4-team Randolph bracket at the HighSchoolOt.com Holiday Invitational. The Tigers used a huge 14-3 run in the second quarter to spark a dominant second half, in which the Tigers seemed to be on cruise control.
The Tigers capitalized on 15 Clayton turnovers, shooting 60% from the floor in the second half as they dumped in 38 points in the second half. Denzel Ingram was a huge factor in the second half as he accounted for five steals and a game-high 19 points, 13 of those coming in the second half. Chapel Hill also got a nice contribution from Anthony Vanhook who tallied a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds. Chapel Hill awaits the winner between Broughton and Rocky Mount for a game that will be contested at 5:40 pm on December 30th at Broughton.
Clayton got a double-double from Gary Clark, 13 points and 10 rebounds, but he also accounted for 4 turnovers, as over-dribbling and some ill-advised passes found their way into the Tigers clutches. Rodney Moore also got into double figures with 10 points for the Comets. They fall into the consolation bracket where they await the loser of the Broughton/Rocky Mount contest that will be played later today at Broughton. That game will be played at 11 am tomorrow at Broughton.
Final stats: CHHS: Anthony Vanhook 15 pts.; Andrew Grant 9 pts.; Denzel Ingram 19pts. (surpassed the 1000 career-point mark); Elliot Orenstein 4 pts.; Ryan Hegedus 9 pts.; Stephen Himmelberg 3pts.; Dillon Winters 3 pts.; Brian Thornton 2 pts.;
CLAY: Anthony Gaskins 9 pts.; Gary Clark 13 pts.; Rodney Moore 10 pts.; Kyle Bryant 6 pts.; Jake Turner 2 pts.; Ryan Ethridge 2 pts.
End 3rd Quarter: The Tigers picked up right where they left off at the end of the second quarter, they continued to extend their lead. The Tigers wrapped up the quarter comfortably in the lead at 50-32. Hot outside shooting by Chapel Hill forced the Comets out of their zone. Once Clayton came out of the zone, Chapel Hill began to drive the basket and picked up several easy buckets underneath. Turnovers continued to plague Clayton as well, as Chapel Hill capitalized on easy buckets off turnovers in the back-court several times.
Halftime: The Tigers went on a 14-3 run in the final five minutes of the half to take a 26-22 lead over Clayton at the halftime break, all of that coming with Gary Clark on the bench at the end of the half for Clayton. The Tigers slashed into the lane and were able to get a couple nice kick out passes for three-pointers by Anthony Vanhook and Andrew Grant. Clayton was also plagued by turnovers in the final part of the half. Chapel Hill looked like the much more explosive of the teams during the second quarter. Clark leads the Comets with 8 points, while Andrew Grant paces the Tigers with 7.
Halftime Stats: CH- Anthony Vanhook 5 pts; Andrew Grant 7 pts.; Denzel Ingram 6 pts.; Ryan Hegedus 5 pts.; Dillon Winters 3 pts. CLAY: Anthony Gaskins 7 pts.; Gary Clark 8 pts.; Rodney Moore 2 pts. Kyle Bryant 3 pts.; Ryan Etheridge 2 pts.
End 1st Quarter: A pretty evenly played first quarter between the Comets and the Tigers, with the Comets leading 12-8. Chapel Hill is having some issues solving the Clayton zone, they'll need to hit some shots from the outside to try and bust the much bigger Comets out of it. Clayton's Gary Clark has been impressive, he has six of the Comets' 12 points and has not only been a force on the inside with offensive rebounding, he's made a couple nice passes from the perimeter to set up teammates for easy buckets. Clayton's size is giving Chapel Hill a tough time on the boards.
Note: The last bucket of the quarter went to Chapel Hill's Denzel Ingram was for two and got him to the 1000 point mark for his career.
Pregame: Clayton and Chapel Hill square off in the first game of the 4-team Randolph Bracket at the HighSchoolOT.com Holiday Invitational Tournament. The Comets are making their third appearance in the tournament, with the last appearance coming in 2003. The Comets have three rising stars to watch, led by 6'6"sophomore power forward Gary Clark. He currently has offers from UNC-Wilmington, and is receiving interest from ECU, South Carolina, Tulane, Virginia and Wake Forest.. Clayton finished last season at 19-7, second in the Greater Neuse River 4A Conference behind Holiday Invitational participant Garner. Clayton enters the Holiday Invitational with a record of 6-2 (2-1).
Chapel Hill makes their second appearance in the Holiday Invitational, their first visit since 1988. The Tigers are coming off of a season in which they made it all the way to the NCHSAA 3A Eastern Regional Final where they fell to the eventual runner-up Winterville-South Central. The Tigers lost five seniors off of that team, including four starters. The lone returning starter is Denzel Ingram, the 5'10" senior guard boasts an offer from American with interest from schools such as Delaware State, UNC-Greensboro, and Western Carolina.
Tip off is at 11, keep checking back for updates after each quarter of today's action!
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