Something had to give earlier this week. The Lakewood Leopards were seeking their first win of the season all while Neuse Charter was searching for their elusive Carolina first 1A conference win that had evaded them for three years. Playing at a fast pace, Neuse Charter never trailed and came away with their first conference victory to end the long drought , 61-57.
The Cougars got in a groove early and maintained. Back to back triples in the opening minute and a half moved Lakewood head coach Brandon Powell to signal for a timeout. Out of said timeout, Neuse Charter saw their lead slowly evaporate to only a slim two point advantage at 14-12. Afterward, though, the Cougars went on a 5-2 run in the final minute of the quarter to take a modest 19-14 lead into quarter number two.
A sloppy start to a quarter once again infected Lakewood. When the Leopards found themselves down by eleven, 25-14, Powell once again asked for a timeout to stop the bleeding. Neuse Charter’s healthy lead eventually fizzled out as the Leopards trimmed it to three behind a JJ Johnson put back slam. However, in the final minute of the half, the Cougars went on an 8-2 run, claiming a 39-30 lead over Lakewood at the break.
Neuse Charter never relinquished their lead in the second half, pulling away each time Lakewood tried to make a comeback. It was the same tactic they deployed against Midway as Neuse Charter continued to turn away scoring runs. The Cougars were holding on to a 46-40 lead entering the final frame.
Again, Lakewood attempted to claw back in the final three minutes of the game but the Neuse Charter was having none of it as the Cougars held on for the 61-57 to claim their first conference win in nearly three years.
Christian Logan led all Lakewood scorers with 20, while Johnson was hot on his heels with 19 of his own.
With the loss, the Leopards remain winless at 0-14 on the season and 0-4 in conference play. Lakewood was back in action on Friday with a tough road game against Princeton, who sports a 12-1 overall record and are 4-0 in Carolina 1A conference play.
