There’s a different feel to Orange football practice this year. Usually when workouts begin at Stanford Baseball Field, it’s closer to 95 degrees. Last Monday, it was around 35 degrees. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg, literally and figuratively. With football starting on February 26, it will be the first time in school history that Orange will play a football season in the spring. Along with the multitude of safety adjustments required by the pandemic, Orange Coach Van Smith has to deal with personnel changes. Wyatt Jones, who had been the starting quarterback the past two years, is now on the Mercer University men’s lacrosse team. Nigel Slanker, who has been the Panthers’ triple-threat kicker, is penciled in as Jones’ replacement. That’s just one of the changes as Orange prepares for its final season in the Big 8 Conference in its current form. Orange travels to East Chapel Hill to start the unusual season a week from this Friday.

It wasn’t Hoosiers. It wasn’t Glory Road.

Heck, it wasn’t even The Sixth Man.

In the end, what it was was an Orange victory on a night of the strange.

Jason Franklin’s lay-in with 2:59 remaining in overtime lifted the Panthers to a 35-32 over East Chapel Hill on Thursday night at Panther Gymnasium in Hillsborough.

“Jason knows that’s his time,” said Orange coach Derryl Britt. “He’s the guy who should have the ball at that time. We talked about having the best players close games out. We’ve had close games were we’ve had to learn how to win. That’s coach speak, but it’s the truth.”

With Orange clinging to a 33-32 lead, the Panthers’ J.J. Thompson intercepted an East pass and was fouled. Thompson drained the subsequent foul shots, his only points of the game.

East Chapel Hill (8-3, 7-0), which has already clinched the Big 8 regular season championship, was led by Will Tyndall’s 15 points.

Franklin finished with 13 points for Orange (2-8, 1-6).

Going into the fourth quarter, the Panthers were lethargic offensively, but they weren’t alone. East led 21-17 going into the fourth quarter. Orange, which relies on the outside shot for most of its offense, sank only two three-pointers in the first three quarters.

East Chapel Hill led 29-22 with 3:53 after a 3-point play by Tyndall and a steal and score from Isaiah Roberson. That was East’s final field goal of the game.

The Panthers cold offense finally found its rhythm when Thompson rattled in a 3-pointer with 3:23 remaining in regulation. On East’s next possession, Kyle Stanley tied up Tyndall for a held-ball, which sent the ball back to Orange. Thompson nailed another 3-pointer to reduce East’s lead to 29-28.

After East was called for traveling, Orange missed on its next possession. Franklin made a huge steal to give the Panthers’ the ball back, then fired a 3-pointer that was a knuckleball that took a dead bounce of the heel of the rim and flatly fell through the net to put Orange ahead 31-29. It was the Panthers’ first lead since it was 2-1.

Charles Stanley sank two free throws to even the game at 31. Orange couldn’t get a shot off on its final possession, which led to a 4-minute overtime.

There was a moment of comedy early in the extra session. After Franklin’s opening field goal, Orange forced a turnover on East’s first possession. Britt asked his scorekeeper “How many timeouts do I have left?” The official trailing the play heard “time out” and immediately charged the timeout to Orange—its final timeout.

EAST CHAPEL HILL WOMEN 39, ORANGE 38

The East Chapel Hill women held off Orange 39-38, the third straight time the Wildcats won in Hillsborough.

Last Wednesday, when the Lady Panthers held off East by five points in Wildcats Gymnasium, the Wildcats had only five players in uniform. On Thursday, they had seven, but freshman center Laynie Smith made the biggest different.

Smith scored 16 points, including 14 in the second half. She knocked down two 3-pointers in the third quarter to put East ahead to stay.

In a bizarre final minute, Orange’s Aaliyah Harris knocked down two 3-pointers to narrow the deficit to 39-38. Orange fouled Abby Stone with 2.2 seconds remaining. On the front end of a 1-and-1, Stone took too long at the foul line and was called for a 10-second violation.

Then things got really weird.

With Orange trailing 39-38, Harris was set to inbounds when East’s Shariah Wells knocked down Orange’s Jarmil Wingate. Wells was whistled for a foul. Orange coach B.J. Condron thought Wingate would go to the foul line since it was East’s eighth team foul. Instead, Orange was ordered to take the ball out of bounds, which led to Harris missing a desperation heave at the buzzer from midcoast.

Afterwards, the officials admitted (under light questioning from a curious Condron) that they erroneously thought that East was in possession of the ball when Wingate was fouled, when it was really Orange inbounding the ball.

Harris scored 14 to lead Orange, who will face Chapel Hill at Smith Middle School on Friday night. Erin Jordan-Cornell had 12 for the Lady Panthers.

ORANGE 35, EAST CHAPEL HILL 32 OT

EAST CHAPEL HILL: Dillon McCafferty 3, Will Tyndall 15, Isaiah Roberson 3, Jerrod Meltzer 5, Nathaniel Stone 1, Charles Stanley 4, Jabari Best 1.

ORANGE: Jerec Thompson 14, Jason Franklin 13, J.J. Thompson 2, Kyle Stanley 2, Devin Corbett 2.

WOMEN

EAST CHAPEL HILL 39, ORANGE 38

EAST CHAPEL HILL: Riley Ellis 10, Laynie Smith 18, Abby Stone 9, Gabby Sielken 2.

ORANGE: Aaliyah Harris 14, Samantha George 4, Erin Jordan-Cornell 13, Jarmil Wingate 2, Katelyn Van Mater 2, Jada Reed 3.

For the third year in a row, the Orange men’s basketball team defeated East Chapel Hill in Hillsborough. This time, East arrived to Panther Gymnasium with the Big 8 Championship already in the bag. But the Panthers knocked down shots down the stretch to pull out a 35-32 victory in overtime. Jason Franklin scored Orange’s only field goal in the extra session and finished with 13 points. J.J. Thompson made a critical steal in the final minute and was fouled in transition, leading to the final two points of the game. Kyle Stanley, the senior center, had several important plays in the post for Orange late as the Panthers secured its second win of the season. On Friday, Orange is scheduled to travel to Chapel Hill.

There’s a saying in the Wild West that there isn’t a horse that can’t be rode and there never was a rider that can’t be thrown.

In high school sports, there never has been a flea that can’t be killed with a sledgehammer.

Orange guard Jason Franklin, playing on his senior night, had just stolen the ball from Northwood’s Drake Powell and was fouled with 1:25 remaining in regulation. With Northwood leading 45-43, Franklin stepped to the foul line with a 1-and-1 with a chance to tie the game.

It was at this moment on Tuesday night that the officials called a technical foul against Orange’s bench because a coach’s mask had fallen below his nose. The coach, according to one official, had been warned twice during the game.

Franklin missed the front end of the 1-and-1 and Orange’s fortunes nosedived. Northwood (8-2, 5-2 in the Big 8 Conference) finished the game with eight straight points to defeat the Panthers 52-43. It was the Chargers’ sixth straight victory over the Panthers.

Afterwards, a dejected Orange Coach Derryl Britt squatted in front of his bench long after the limited gathering of parents and students had departed and murmured “It hurts, man.”

Coming off a win at Vance County that ended a nine-game losing streak, Orange played with fire against a taller and faster opponent. Franklin finished with 15 points, tied for team-high honors with junior guard Jerec Thompson.

Jarin Stevenson led Northwood with 17 points, but it was Federico Whitaker whose presence was felt the most for the Chargers in the second half. Whitaker hit a trio of 3-pointers in the third quarters and came away with 16 points, 13 after halftime.

Northwood never trailed in the second half, but its largest lead with only nine. With 5:50 remaining in the fourth quarter, Northwood led 51-44, Franklin soared above Troy Arnold on an inbounds pass and found J.J. Thompson for a 3-pointer.

After Stevenson scored on a stickleback of a miss by Arnold to increase the Chargers’ lead to 53-47, J.J. Thompson drilled another 3-pointer with 4:05 left. J.J. Thompson finished with eleven points, one short of his season-high.

Northwood center Tucker Morgan got a jump hook to fall to push the Chargers’ lead to 55-50. Jerec Thompson matched that with another 3-pointer, his third of the fourth quarter, to pull Orange within 3.

Franklin carried the first half for Orange on offense, scoring 12 points. Stevenson had 13 in the first half.

Orange (1-8, 1-7) hosts East Chapel Hill, which has already clinched the Big 8 Championship, on Thursday in Hillsborough.

WOMEN’S GAME: NORTHWOOD 41, ORANGE 23

The Northwood women’s basketball team has already captured its second straight Big 8 Championship. On Tuesday night, they showed why they’re a 3A State Championship contender.

Using its depth and surplus of sizable forwards and centers, the Chargers defeated Orange 41-23. It was a season-low in total points for Orange, which had a five-game winning streak snapped.

6-0 sophomore center Ta’Keyah Bland finished with 14 points for the Chargers, who are ranked #3 in the latest 3A MaxPreps rankings. Skylar Adams added 12 for the Chargers, who have won 18 consecutive games against Big 8 Conference opponents.

Orange center Erin Jordan-Cornell led the Lady Panthers with eight. Point guard Aaliyah Harris, who had been in double figures in five straight games, was held to seven.

Orange led for much of the first quarter, but the Chargers used a 12-0 run bridging the first and second quarters to go ahead 18-8. Consecutive field goals by Jordan-Cornell at the end of the first half reduced Orange’s deficit to 18-12 at the half.

Orange could only muster two field goals in the third quarter.

The Lady Panthers will host East Chapel Hill on Thursday night.

Between games of the doubleheader, Orange held a ceremony for the only senior on the women’s team, Jala Rainey, who scored the final basket of the game.

MEN: NORTHWOOD 52, ORANGE 43

NORTHWOOD: Colby Burleson 4, Frederico Whitaker 16, Drake Powell 2, Jarin Stevenson 17, Tucker Morgan 6, Troy Arnold 5, Kenan Parrish 2.

ORANGE: Jerec Thompson 15, J.J. Thompson 11, Hunter Birch 2, Jason Franklin 15.

WOMEN: NORTHWOOD 41, ORANGE 23

NORTHWOOD: Rae McClarty 2, Ta’Keyah Bland 14, Skylar Adams 12, Myla Marve 6, Jillian McNaught 2, McKenna Snively 5.

ORANGE: Aaliyah Harris 7, Samantha George 4, Erin Jordan-Cornell 8, Jarmil Wingate 2, Jala Rainey 2.

It was another strong game for Cedar Ridge sophomore Neco Clark in the Red Wolves’ 55-52 win over Northern Durham on Tuesday night at Red Wolves Gymnasium. Clark led Cedar Ridge with 19 points, which tied his career-high. Clark shot 7-of-10 from the field. On January 11, Clark also had 19 points in a win over crosstown rival Orange. It was the fourth time this year that Clark finished in double figures. Last week, Clark had 17 against Chapel Hill. The Tigers came away with a 61-47 win at Cedar Ridge, but the Red Wolves will have a rematch on Wednesday night. Cedar Ridge will face the Tigers at Smith Middle School. Cedar Ridge is 5-5, its best start in four years.

For the first time since 2016, the Cedar Ridge men’s basketball team is at .500 after eight game in a season. The Red Wolves defeated Northern Durham 55-52 on Tuesday night at Red Wolves Gymnasium. Sophomore forward Johntez Raspberry had a strong floor game with five points, four rebounds and four assists. Cedar Ridge completed a season sweep of the Knights. On January 15, Cedar Ridge defeated Northern Durham 49-34, a game where Raspberry had a season-high seven points, along with six rebounds and three blocks. The Red Wolves carried the momentum from Friday’s win over Orange and are now 4-4 on the season, 2-3 in the Big 8 Conference. Cedar Ridge will travel to Chapel Hill on Wednesday night for a rematch against the Tigers. Last week, Chapel Hill defeated the Red Wolves in Hillsborough.