Broome dominated Mid-Carolina with its size and physicality from the onset Friday night and rolled to a 73-38 win in the Region III-3A opener.
The Centurions were all over the boards and never allowed the Rebels to consistently set up on offense.
That dominance set up every facet of the game. Once Broome forced a couple of early turnovers while grabbing offensive boards, the game snowballed for the Rebels.
Not only could the Rebels not break through the Centurions’ defense, they had no answer for Broome’s offense.
Paced by Keonta O’Fair’s game high 25 points, Broome consistently made the Rebels pay for their shortcomings with the ball. With nine of the 10 players on the roster scoring at least three points, the entire team enjoyed success.
“First game in region, it’s imperative you start out strong especially if you have aspirations of winning a region championship. I really feel like we played all three phases, of defense, rebounding and offense, really well tonight,” said Broome coach Ben Martin.
Also finishing in double figures for the Centurions was Jarius Jeter with 10.
GIRLS
Broome 49, Mid-Carolina 41: A big second quarter spurred the Lady Centurions to victory. After leading just 7-5 after the first, Mid-Carolina had no answer as Broome continually pounded the ball inside for easy baskets.
Something coach Sally Sprouse-Anderson worked on with her team coming into the game. It resulted in an 18-4 run.
“We’ve been working really hard on penetration this week. We play kind of on the outside sometimes, so we talked to our guards about how if they have the confidence to get inside and get some foul calls they’ll get some buckets,” Sprouse-Anderson said.
Instead of turning into a rout, the Rebels’ Nia Hall (20 points) grabbed momentum shortly before the half and continued it into the second half. A once 16-point lead evaporated into a four-point lead midway through the third.
A couple of threes from Yasmin Hassan returned their lead to double digits late in the fourth. From there, the Centurions survived an effort from the Rebels to foul their way back into the game for the victory.
“They went on a little run, Hall, we saw her on film and knew she was really good," Sprouse-Anderson said. "So, our goal was to man her. She went on a little run in the second quarter, but we shut her down again. They really took her out of the game,”
The Centurions finished with four players in double digits. La’Nya Lee led the team with 13 points. Tori Rochester added 11, while Hailey Wells and Hassan each scored 10.