Monday, Jan. 18, 2010

Clayton duo too much for Smithfield-Selma

The age-old idiom is that two heads are better than one.

When it came down to the girls' basketball matchup between Clayton and Smithfield-Selma Friday night, two Comet players -- Vernessa Hinnant and Marnikka Young -- were more than the Spartans could overcome behind Tori Kearney.

That trio of players finished in double figures, but the duo of Hinnant and Young, with 23 and 19 points, respectively, made the difference.

They were more than Kearney, who bucketed 18 points, and the Spartans could match as Clayton rolled to a 66-33 win.

Young did most of her damage in the first half, pouring in 15 points while leading the Comets to a 30-13 halftime lead. She led all rebounders with 10 boards in posting a double-double for the Comets.

Hinnant, consistent throughout the game, did a majority of her damage in the third quarter, bucketing nine of her 11 second-half points. She scorched the Spartans inside and outside throughout the evening, burying a trio of the Comets' seven 3-pointers in the contest.

Kearney did her best to keep the score respectable for the Spartans, bulling her way into the paint for a trio of baskets and several trips to the free-throw line, where she canned 6-of-9 attempts.

Kearney also buried a pair of three-pointers along with a couple of two-point baskets as she tried to spark the Spartans' attack.

But it was not enough for the Spartans, who seemed tentative in the first period to take shots against the aggressive, swarming defense of the Comets, who improved to 15-2 overall and 6-1 in the Greater Neuse River 4-A Conference.

Smithfield-Selma turned the ball over nine times in the first quarter and trailed 14-5. The Comets suffered through a frigid 4-of-17 shooting in the period.

And once the Spartans did start to shoot, the ball just wouldn't fall through the hoop.

Clayton took advantage of an icy 3-of-18 effort from the field by the Spartans to build a 30-13 halftime bulge. The Comets coasted throughout the second half while the Spartans connected on just 4-of-27 shots.