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By Brian Pitts
Enterprise Record

After starting terribly, the Ellis boys basketball team woke up and stormed past South Davie 62-44 on Nov. 25.
The Tigers (4-6) bolted to a quick 15-point lead as Jared Vaughters provided an eight-point spark in the first quarter.
“I took all five starters out toward the end of the first quarter,” Ellis coach Roger Blalock said. “I was fairly upset. I bet in the first quarter we missed 10 straight layups. I’m talking about easy (layups). We just could not hit anything. It was horrible. I was concerned.”
The visiting Jaguars would finally find their groove and remain unbeaten. Mason Driver keyed a 20-10 run in the second quarter that lifted Ellis in front 27-26. Jordan Crowley led a 19-point third that extended Ellis’ lead to 46-36. The 9-0 Jags kept pulling ahead in the fourth.
“We started playing like we’re supposed to,” Blalock said. “We started pressing and getting turnovers.”
Driver, who is averaging 15 points across three games, led Ellis with 17 points and four assists. Crowley was next with 11 points to go with four assists. Cam James (nine points, 11 rebounds) and Bowman Blakley (eight points, 15 rebounds) helped Ellis reach its longest winning streak in seven years.
“Henry (Migliarese) was sick, so Jordan started and he had a bunch of assists and played good defense,” Blalock said.
The top scorers for South were Anderson Branham (10), Colson Dulin (10) and Vaughters (eight).
This is the Jaguars’ longest winning streak since it went 9-0 in 2017-18, when they were led by Za’haree Maddox, Alex Summers and Tate Carney.
North 37, Moor 28
North Davie took a considerable step forward at Mooresville on Nov. 25. Behind another stellar performance from Nolan Allen, the Wildcats pulled off a 25-point swing from the first meeting, when Mooresville beat them 55-39.
North built a 17-4 halftime lead and then held on.
“Got a big win,” coach Caleb Davis said. “We watched film of our first game and were able to make some adjustments defensively and hold them to four first-half points.”
The Red Imps used a furious rally to cut North’s lead to one in the fourth. Wade Ridenhour, though, was ready for the moment. Four days after drilling a clutch 3 in a win over South Davie, he hit another 3 at money time to put North ahead by four.
Allen finished with 22 points by hitting 10 of 11 free throws. It was nothing new for a guy who has delivered 20-plus on six occasions. Ridenhour had six points. Jeremiah Hernandez had four points and three assists. Levi Morales had three points and six rebounds. Glen Greene had two points and seven rebounds as North (5-5) won for the third time in four games.
“Nolan took control when we needed it, and Wade hit a dagger 3 to put the nail in the coffin,” Davis said. “One of (Allen’s) strongest attributes is his ability to stay calm under pressure. Other teams throw everything at him defensively, and he rarely allows his emotions to escalate.”
Ellis 62 – Mason Driver 17, Jordan Crowley 11, Cam James 9, Bowman Blakley 8, Graham Weaver 6, Wade Hefner 4, Peyton Fishel 4, Ben Bost 3.
South Davie 44 – Anderson Branham 10, Colson Dulin 10, Jared Vaughters 8, Dreighton Lunnerman 6, Ty Cozart 5, Malachi Miller 4, Wyatt Tucker 1.

North Davie 37, Mooresville 28 – Nolan Allen 22, Wade Ridenhour 6, Jeremiah Hernandez 4, Levi Morales 3, Glen Greene 2.