The Queens Grant Stallions basketball team played their season home opener on Friday night on their home court at Carolina Courts. It was also Homecoming Night which was celebrated at half time.
The Stallions lost a hard fought non-conference game against Covenant Day last week on the road by four points. However, they were able to bounce back to dominate Sugar Creek 72-41 in a contest that could have been even more lopsided.
The Stallions have some good talent on their team who have speed and a nose for the ball. In the first period they only led 10-4 and the gap could have been much wider. They stole many passes and their opponent had a difficult time breaking the Stallions full court press initially until the Sugar Creek coach finally called a time out down 4-0.
The half ended with the Stallions up 23-10 in a game they controlled, but could not take advantage of turnovers along with a poor shooting percentage from the floor. They just were not hitting their shots and could not fully capitalize on their opponents mistakes and forced errors.
In the second half the Stallions came out to play and blew open a huge lead outscoring Sugar Creek 27-11 giving them a commanding 50-21 advantage. In the fourth period they added another 22 points with the coach emptying his bench and rotating players in and out of the game.
This team showed what they are capable of accomplishing in the second half after some adjustments were made by Coach Forsythe, including some motivating remarks from the assistant coaches to play up to their full potential.
The Stallions responded and walked away with their first win of the young season. Jah’Quez Sanders scored 13 points with 5 rebounds, LB Boyette led all scorers with 19 points, Jeremiah Murphy added 12 points, point guard Josh Suggs had 9 points, Javari Cox 8, Xavier Westbrook 7, and Ahmad McNight added 2 points on a huge slam dunk, along with 10 rebounds for the Stallions.
Coach Jay Forsythe was satisfied with the win. “I really liked the way the team responded in the second half,” said Coach Forsythe.
The Stallions are now 1-1 and will play their next non-conference home game on Tuesday night at Carolina Courts against Central Academy of Technology and the Arts. Another win would certainly make the turkey and all the dressings taste a little better on Thanksgiving.
