Hilton Head Prep’s Javone Watson leads Dolphins to win over John Paul II Warriors
The Hilton Head Prep boys basketball team took control in the third quarter Tuesday night at John Paul II, and Javone Watson finished with a game-high 24 points to lead the Dolphins to a 61-42 victory in a showdown with the Warriors.
The Dolphins (10-2) led 31-23 at halftime, but ratcheted up their intensity after the break to pull away. Hilton Head Prep forced the host Warriors into 10 turnovers in the third quarter. Freshman Stone MacDonald had three steals and two blocked shots for Prep in the decisive period.
“We take great pride in coming out ready to play in the third quarter,” Hilton Head Prep coach Jerry Faulkner said. “Especially on the road, you’ve got to make sure you come out in the third quarter and you don’t give them any hope to get back in it. I thought the kids did that.”
Hilton Head Prep outscored the home team 17-10 in the third quarter to take a 15-point lead into the final period. The Warriors (11-3) turned up the pressure in the fourth, but were saddled with foul trouble. Prep was in the double bonus at the start of the fourth, and the hosts weren’t able to whittle away at the deficit.
“I liked our start,” Faulkner said. “I thought we stayed in the game, and when the game got a little out of hand — as far as the score — I thought we didn’t lose our concentration. I credit the seniors for good leadership.
“Rodney Sturgis, our point guard, did a great job controlling the action,” he added. “When you get that kind of pressure, you’ve got to make smart decisions, and I think Rodney did that.”
MacDonald finished with seven points, five steals and four rebounds for Prep, and Mac Orie added seven points and six rebounds.
“Javone had a great game, Mac had a great game. It was a good win for us,” Faulkner said.
“Beating them in here is huge.”
Rashad Battiste and Nylen Wright did most of the scoring for John Paul II. Battiste finished with 19 points and nine rebounds, and Wright had 13 points. Karl Johnson added eight points for the Warriors, who committed 27 turnovers on the night.
Hilton Head Prep girls 39, John Paul II 16
Catherine Sheehan helped the Dolphins break open the game after halftime, picking up four steals and scoring 14 of her game-high 19 points in the third quarter.
Kiersten Clark added 12 points for Prep, which outscored the Warriors 18-1 in the third. The Dolphins led 15-8 at halftime.
Abigail Barker had five points to lead the Warriors.
This story was originally published January 10, 2017 at 8:55 PM with the headline "Hilton Head Prep’s Javone Watson leads Dolphins to win over John Paul II Warriors."