ELON–From McLeansville to Creedmoor to Burlington to Hillsborough to Roxboro to Graham to Reidsville to Elon.

All told, it’s been ten consecutive games away from home for the Orange men’s basketball team since they last played inside Panther Gymnasium on December 20. Five of them were conference games and the team knew before Christmas the long stretch would make or break their hopes of winning a second consecutive Central Conference regular season championship.

The Panthers are now set for the stretch run tied with Eastern Alamance for first place.

On Friday night, Kai Wade scored 23 points to lead a wire-to-wire 79-57 win at Western Alamance on the Coach Evans Court. From the time Wade fired a 18-footer that kicked high off the back iron and fell through the net, it was possibly Wade’s finest performance of the season.

Senior Xandrell Pennix added 12 points, placing him at 932 career points as Orange improved to 14-5. Freddy Sneed added 14 points for the Panthers, who are 7-1 in the Central Conference. Orange has defeated the Warriors seven consecutive times.

In its last home game, Orange rolled past Western Alamance 73-48. The rematch on Friday held the potential for more intrigue because Warriors guard James Newton didn’t play against the Panthers in Hillsborough. Newton, who has committed to play football at Gardner-Webb, was in South Carolina for the Shrine Bowl.

Newton had a huge scoring game in the Warriors upset of Eastern Alamance on January 3. On Friday night against Orange, he was limited to ten points, going scoreless in the second half.

After Newton banked in a 3-pointer to cut Orange’s lead to 8-6, Wade and Pennix responded with consecutive 3-pointers. Newton found Matt Huffman for a lay-in, but Hector Garrido found Jalen Crayton for a monster stuff directly in the face of Camden Oliveira.

Sneed increased Orange’s lead to 18-13 after a strip and steal, but Oliveria responded with a 3-pointer. Wade took the drama out of it when he drained a 27-foot 3-pointer as the quarter wound to a close to give the Panthers a 27-16 lead.

Newton scored an early 3-pointer in the second quarter, but the Warriors had an inability to cash in second-chance points that could have kept the game close. The Panthers shot out to a 9-2 run to put the game away. Wade finished the first half with 18 points.

In the fourth quarter, senior Ethan Ellis drained two 3-pointers. Kamaal Smith would finish with seven points.

Orange will face Walter Williams tonight (Tuesday) to start a string of five consecutive home games to conclude the regular season.

Women’s Basketball: Western Alamance 60, Orange 48: 

Orange played Western Alamance to its closest conference game of the season, but the Warriors claimed its 18th consecutive win against a Central Conference opponent. Looking for its second consecutive league title, senior Allie Sykes led the Warriors with 18 points.

Orange’s Evelyn George scored 22 points. It was her fifth 20-point game of the season and the 13th of her career.

The Warriors didn’t trail but Orange played a much more competitive contest than their previous matchup on December 20. In the fourth quarter, Orange center Marshea Byrd had a personal 10-0 run for Orange.

Once again, the Warriors excelled with 3-point shooting. Emma Johnson finished with 13 points, including a trio of 3-pointers. Sykes knocked down four 3-pointers as Western Alamance improved to 14-2 overall, 6-0 in the Central Conference. The Warriors snapped the Lady Panthers six-game winning streak.

Western Alamance’s bench outscored Orange 10-5.

Orange falls to 10-7, 4-3 in the Central Conference. The Lady Panthers will return home to face Walter Williams on Tuesday (tonight) in Hillsborough. It will be the start of a two-game homestand for Orange women’s basketball. On Friday night, they will host crosstown rival Cedar Ridge.

 

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