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By Brian Pitts
Davie Enterprise Record

Against East Forsyth on Jan. 24, Davie’s JV boys basketball team came up short, 52-51, in a home game that featured twists and turns.
It was an upset loss for the War Eagles, who whipped East (6-7) by 13 on Dec. 13.
The War Eagles held a 36-27 lead in the third quarter. After East pulled off a 17-3 run, it was 44-39 in favor of the visitors. The War Eagles used a 7-0 spurt to grab a 47-46 lead, but they missed a tying free throw in the final seconds.
Noah Dulin (16 points), Aiden Horton (12) and Draeton Nance (10) hit double figures in Davie’s third loss of the season.
Davie 66, Reagan 49
Despite facing a five-point deficit at the end of the first quarter, Davie won going away at Reagan on Jan. 28.
Davie roared in front in the second quarter as Nance scored seven of his team’s 17 points. Davie extended a 31-27 halftime lead to 51-39 in the third as Dulin knocked down 10 of Davie’s 20 points.
Dulin and Nance finished with 24 and 15, respectively. Horton was the the third in double figures with 11. William Martin was next with seven.
Tabor 58, Davie 48
Before Davie headed to Tabor on Jan. 31, the teams had played two games that weren’t decided until final seconds. Tabor won by four on Dec. 27 and Davie won by three on Jan. 3.
For the third meeting, Davie’s top two scorers – Dulin at 15.6 ppg and Nance at 14.6 – were moved up to varsity for the rest of the season. And it was a struggle after Davie ended the first with a 16-14 lead.
Justin Haggler and Wyatt Harwood combined for four 3-pointers in the first, but Davie’s offense turned ice cold in the second as Tabor sprinted to a 29-19 halftime lead. The margin continued to grow in the fourth as Davie slipped to 15-4 overall and 7-3 in the CPC.
It’s obviously a different team now. Cam Knox and Haggler replaced the freshmen brothers in the starting lineup.
“But we’re really rotating it between four guys – those two (Knox and Haggler) and Jayce Bentley and Wyatt Harwood,” said coach Brandon Thalasinos, who was not discouraged by the loss. “I saw a lot of good things – a lot of heart, a lot of energy. It’s hard when you lose a leader on the floor like Dre, who could run the offense. Now you’ve got to find that guy who’s comfortable stepping up and help guide the others on the floor to know when you need to push it and when you need to settle. I saw spurts of greatness from several different dudes and we’ll get there.”
Horton (17), Haggler (season-high 14) and Harwood (season-high 11) cracked double figures for Davie. Haggler came in averaging four and Harwood’s previous high was seven. Now Davie needs Horton (11.9 ppg) to have a hefty scoring presence.
“He’s a post and a guard,” Thalasinos said. “He’s a big-body kid. He’s got ball skills, too. So if the jump shot’s not falling, you’ve got to drive, and he did that in the second half. He was scoreless in the first half. He scored in the fourth quarter by basically putting the ball on the floor and taking it to the hoop.”
E. Forsyth 52, Davie 51 – Noah Dulin 16, Aiden Horton 12, Draeton Nance 10, Carter Cornett 6, William Martin 4, Cam Knox 2, Tate Helton 1.
Davie 66, Reagan 49 – Noah Dulin 24, Draeton Nance 15, Aiden Horton 11, William Martin 7, Justin Haggler 3, Jayce Bentley 2, Tate Helton 2, Ian Patton 2.
Tabor 58, Davie 48 – Aiden Horton 17, Justin Haggler 14, Wyatt Harwood 11, William Martin 4, Jayce Bentley 2.