Latta’s Lady Vikings and Dillon’s Lady Wildcats both took on tough competition in the Little Caesar’s Invitational at South Florence High School last week. The tournament began on Thursday, December 27, with both local teams falling in the opening round.
Dillon took on West Florence on Thursday, and after tying 6-6 in the first quarter, West Florence outscored Dillon 10-2 in the second to take the lead. The Knights returned from the half to again outpace Dillon 13-5 and wrapped up with a 9-8 fourth quarter for a 38-21 win over the Wildcats.
Khamele Manning led Dillon with eight points in the loss and Brianna Lee earned four for the Lady Wildcats.
Latta faced Scotland County in the first round with the Fighting Scots taking a commanding 18-6 lead in the first and maintaining it with a 7-6 second quarter. Scotland County widened the gap with a 15-11 third period, and despite a 20-14 rally from the Vikings in the fourth, the Fighting Scots took a 54-43 win into round two.
Jessica Evans led Latta with 12 points. Tianna Deberry scored 10 in the loss, including a 14-9 run in the fourth with TaKeria Legette.
In the other opening round games, Timmonsville shut down Pee Dee Academy 45-27 and South Florence defeated Carvers Bay 58-52.
On Friday, December 28, Latta took on Dillon in game five of the tournament with the Lady Vikings earning a 46-31 win over the Wildcats.
The two teams battled through the first half and were tied 26-26 in the third. With less than a minute in the quarter, a layup and a free throw from Tianna Deberry gave the Vikings a 29-26 lead heading into the fourth, where Latta made a 17-0 run to seal the win.
Deberry led the Lady Vikings with 17 points, with Jessica Evans and TaKeria Legette each adding 10 points in the win.
Khamele Manning led Dillon with 13 points and Yolanda Campbell added 10 for the Lady Wildcats.
In Friday’s other games, Carvers Bay defeated Pee Dee Academy in a high-scoring 72-68 game; West Florence edged Scotland County 55-54; and Timmonsville defeated South Florence 48-44 in overtime.
Dillon kicked off the last day of the tournament on Saturday, December 29, with a 45-37 win over Pee Dee Academy. The Wildcats led 17-15 at the half, but Pee Dee took a 29-27 lead by the end of the third. But the Wildcats rallied in the fourth with Khamele Manning scoring five points to help put Dillon ahead permanently for the 45-37 win.
Manning scored 15 points to lead Dillon in the win.
Latta also picked up a win Saturday as they took down Carvers Bay 58-36. The Lady Vikings went 9-5 in the first and outscored Carvers Bay 24-4 in the second to take an insurmountable lead.
TaKeria Legette led the Lady Vikings with 16 points and Jessica Evans earned 14 in the win.
Elsewhere in the tournament, Scotland County defeated South Florence 60-43, and West Florence defeated Timmonsville 43-37 to claim the tournament championship.
Latta’s Tianna Deberry and Dillon’s Khamele Manning were both named to the All Tournament Team. Destinee Walker of West Florence was named the tournament MVP.
Meanwhile in boys’ basketball action, the Dillon Wildcats traveled to Chesterfield for the Farm Bureau Classic.
Dillon took on Anson County in the first round and got off to a 19-14 lead in the first. But Anson outscored Dillon 17-13 in the second to trail the Wildcats 32-31 at the half. Dillon roared back onto the court for a 22-10 third quarter but Anson County rallied for a 30-15 fourth to edge Dillon 71-69.
Great Falls defeated Central of Pageland 72-71 in the opening round of the tournament, and Anson County took down Great Falls 70-51 in round two on Friday. On Saturday, Chesterfield edged Great Falls 57-56 in the consolation championship bracket.
Dillon, Latta, Lake View, and Dillon Christian boys and girls basketball teams will all resume regular season play on the road on Tuesday, January 8. The Wildcats, Vikings, and Wild Gators will be opening region play for the season.
