Evans Middle wins to move into tie for second in standings

The Columbia County middle school race got more interesting Friday. Evans put together two halves of timely shooting and bruising inside play en route to a 38-30 win over Greenbrier that put the Knights in a tie with Columbia Middle for second place in the standings as we near the season's halfway point.

Evans fell behind early to a disciplined Greenbrier team that is led by scrappy point guard Cyrus Wilder, who got Greenbrier's offense on track early. Wilder penetrated the paint, made floaters, and found teammates inside. The Wolfpack led 14-5 with less than 2 minutes remaining in the second quarter.

Mackenzie Norman (left) and Cole Anderson battle for
position Friday. Norman led all scorers with 15 points.

But Evans' perimeter trio of Mackenzie Norman and seventh graders Brandon Brown and Cameron Warren gradually heated up and quickly erased the deficit before halftime. The teams traded baskets and leads throughout the third quarter. But Evans forward Cameron Bridell, another seventh grader, established an inside presence that, along with the perimeter shooting barrage, was too much for Greenbrier to overcome.

Norman led all scorers with 14 points. Wilder scored 8 points to pace the Wolfpack.

Evans improves to 3-1 and stands tied with Columbia one game behind Grovetown. The Knights face Riverside and Stallings Island next week. Greenbrier falls to 3-1 and faces a brutal week with games against Columbia and Grovetown.

Grovetown, Columbia, Evans, and Greenbrier have carved out spots in the top half of the 8 team Columbia County field. But with ten games remaining, there is plenty of time for those teams to come back to the pack, and for the teams that haven't sprinted out to a fast start to get moving.