Unbeaten Boys Pass First Test
Published 12:00 am Thursday, December 20, 2012
By Brian Pitts
Davie Enterprise Record
The Davie varsity boys basketball team is still unbeaten, but perhaps more importantly, Davie is no longer untested.
The first three games of the season were as challenging as a walk in the park on a sunny day, with the War Eagles winning by 20, 45 and 19 points.
They needed a tough game, and they got one from Smith Saturday at UNC Greensboro. In fact, they got a scare as Smith rallied to 50-49 with less than a minute left.
But when the big moment arrived, Davie responded, pulling away 54-49 to improve to 4-0.
The War Eagles repelled a fearless opponent smelling an upset despite playing a slow-down, grind-it-out game that saw them score the fewest points in 36 games (dating to a 47-46 loss to North Davidson in the ‘11 conference tournament).
The style of play was a stark contrast to last year’s meetings, when Smith won 60-57 and Davie got revenge 88-77 in the first round of the playoffs.
“It was a great test in a lot of ways – the quality of program they have, playing here on a big court, a home game for them,” coach Mike Absher said. “You knew it was going to be a challenge, so I’m very pleased with the effort we got.”
Davie 83, N. Iredell 38
The War Eagles rocketed past a doormat foe in a 45-point laugher on the road.
Caleb Martin kicked off a sterling week with a career-high 29 points, eight rebounds and five assists. It was the sixth 20-point game of his three-year varsity career, but his previous high had been 22.
Twins Austin and Taylor Hatfield added solid stats, with Austin scoring 13 points to go with four assists and Taylor getting 10 points, six assists and four steals. Keep in mind, the starters played little more than half the game.
Davie 87, Lexington 68
The gym was rocking for Davie’s first home game, and the War Eagles gave their packed-house fans a whole lot to cheer about.
After building a 49-37 halftime lead, they kicked into another gear in the third, outscoring Lexington 24-11 to push the margin to 73-48.
“The crowd was amazing,” Austin said. “I could not have been more happy with the crowd. It gets us hyped and ready to play. Caleb and Cody came out with a few massive dunks, and we just continued to play our game.”
“Everybody was fired up to finally be at home and play in front of a big crowd,” Absher said.
Caleb was the main man in the first quarter, scoring all 13 of his points in the first five minutes. After brother Cody stole the ball in the backcourt, he fed Caleb for a monster slam. Taylor tossed an alley-oop to Caleb, who followed that dunk with a 3-point swish. Caleb got a steal and finished with a yet another dunk. Then he scored on a putback.
“We had a lot of …