Millbrook boys and girls win Powerade State Games basketball titles

It was yet another good day for Millbrook basketball.

The Wildcat boys won their second straight championship while the girls won it for the first time in the basketball finals of the Powerade State Games on Sunday at N.C. Central’s McLendon-McDougald Gym.

Millbrook drubbed Southern Durham 60-37 in the boys’ final while the Wildcats held off Panther Creek 46-32 in the girls’ title game.

All four teams in the finals had gone 4-0 in pool play.

Middle Creek walloped Southwest Wake Athletic Conference rival Apex 87-56 in the boys’ bronze medal game. Southern blew past county rival Jordan 48-32 in the girls’ bronze medal game.

The competing teams were made up of players eligible to play for their current high schools in the 2015-16 season.

Millbrook led the boys’ final 15-11 after one period, 32-18 at the break and 46-28 after three quarters.

“It was great for both our teams to win it,” said Millbrook’s Chris Davis, who ran the squad while regular-season head coach Scott McInnes assisted from the bench. “I was happy the girls’ team was able to come and win it.

“I thought we got better as a team. The State Games let us play against a lot of different styles of teams. We couldn’t ask for a better event.”

Rising senior forward Trejon Jacob led the Wildcats with 19 points while Jordan Whitfield chipped in 13.

“I thought the things we did best were defense and rebounding,” Jacob said. “We pushed the ball in transition and trusted our teammates well.”

Added Whitfield, “I thought we executed well, played as a team and gave great effort.”

Millbrook went 26-3 and was East 4A runner-up last season while Southern went 13-11 playing in the Big Eight 3A Conference.

“It was a really good week for us,” said Southern boys’ coach Kendrick Hall, whose daughter Kaliya won silver for Panther Creek. “We just needed to come together in a team event. Millbrook wins on a consistent basis and playing against them was a learning experience.

“I was happy for Kaliya. It was kind of bittersweet in the semifinals because they were playing Southern. I thought it was good for her to meet some heat as well.”

Rashad Dixon led the Spartans with nine points while Jomari Brown and Jordan Beal added seven each.

“I felt pretty good,” Dixon, a rising junior forward, said. “I thought we kept our intensity really well. Millbrook is a great team but we’re also a good team, and both teams are really athletic.”

In the girls’ title game Millbrook, which went 24-2 and won the Cap-8 Conference championship during the regular season, slowly pulled away from as Catamount squad that was coming off a 7-16 campaign.

Millbrook led 15-8 after the first period and 23-13 at the break.

“This is the last thing we’re going to do for the summer because the kids are involved in AAU,” Millbrook coach Chris East said. “But I think we got better. We looked better this week.

“Being in the right place defensively is big for us, and if we can do that and put pressure on the ball we’re a pretty good team.”

Rising senior center Dominique Cross led the Wildcats with 11 points, followed by Dazia Powell and Zairya West with seven each.

“I feel like we were pretty good this whole tournament,” said the 6-foot center Cross. “I just have to keep getting in shape and try to get a double-double every time. Our goal is to get a ring this year.”

Kai Crutchfield, the rising junior guard who is already committed to N.C. State, added four points for Millbrook.

“I’m just trying to be a diverse player,” Crutchfield said. “I want to play good defense, shoot the 3-pointer mid-range and do the best I can to help my team.”

Panther Creek coach Danielle Moore said her team gave a great account of itself in winning the silver medal and playing a competitive game against Millbrook.

“We wanted to be disciplined and focused, just do what we do and not let anything get out of hand,” Moore said. “We played great zone defense. The shots didn’t fall for us the way we would have liked, but I’m proud of our effort.”

Rising sophomore Zanah Boyd led all scorers for Panther Creek with 14 points.

“I think we worked together as a team and communicated well on the floor,” Boyd said. “I thought it was a great accomplishment just to get to this game.”

Adding seven points for the Catamounts was guard Kalaya Hall, who played last season at Mills Park Middle School.

“I just need to get my teammates the ball and keep good ball movement,” Kalaya Hall said. “I want to get my shooters open passes and hope they knock it down.”

This story was originally published June 29, 2015 at 12:15 AM with the headline "Millbrook boys and girls win Powerade State Games basketball titles."