ROCKINGHAM — The Rockingham Middle School boys’ basketball team was on a mission all season to complete what it came up short of last season — winning the conference championship.
The No. 1 Rockets achieved that goal on Thursday by defeating No. 3 Sandy Grove Middle School in the Southeast Conference title game.
Rockingham and head coach Julius Bowden lost last year’s championship to cross-county rival Hamlet Middle School. But this season, the Rockets edged the Panthers 50-47.
“This is proof that hard work pays off,” Bowden said. “I’m so proud of these guys. I would like to thank Coach (Deion) Green, the fans and the parents for being so supportive this season.”
Chance Crowder and Jayden Hamilton led the offensive charge for the Rockets. Crowder had 19 points (with 12 in the second half) and Hamilton netted 18 points (scoring 11 in the first half).
Four other Rockets found the basket in the win — Dominic Tillman scored all 7 of his points in the first half, Bob Pegues added 3 points, Tyler McKenzie netted 2 points and Andrea Streeter chipped in a free throw.
Rockingham took a 10-5 lead after the first quarter. Hamilton scored his first 7 points on three field goals and a free throw, while Tillman chipped in a bucket and a shot from the line.
Crowder joined the mix as part of a 16-point second period, finding the hoop for 7 points. He had three free throws bookended with a pair of buckets.
Tillman capped his scoring with two more baskets and Hamilton added 4 points to give him 11 at the break. Streeter’s free throw gave the Rockets a 26-20 lead at halftime.
The Panthers outscored the Rockets in both second-half quarters, starting with a 16-14 effort in the third. Crowder kept Rockingham ahead with a triple and a bucket for 5 more points.
Hamilton added to his point total with two free throws and another field goal. Pegues rattled home a three-pointer for his lone points in the game and McKenzie added his two points to give the Rockets a 40-36 lead going into the final period.
Despite being outscored 11-10 in the fourth, the Rockets used Crowder and Hamilton to ice the championship.
Crowder hit a bucket before connecting on a three-pointer and two more free throws. Hamilton netted a three-pointer for his final points of the game.
Rockingham finished the season with a perfect 11-0 record.
Lady Rockets also win conference championship
The No. 1 Rockingham girls' basketball team also won the conference championship on Thursday, defeating Carver Middle School 34-32. The Lady Rockets and head coach Teresa Mason capped a perfect 11-0 season. No stats were provided for this game at the time of publication.
