The Clinton Lady Dark Horses held their annual basketball jamboree this past Saturday. Some last-minute dropouts lowered the total of schools attending the event from 20 to 17, but Clinton head coach Chris Owens still had high remarks of the event.

“I think the jamboree went well,” Owens said. “I’m grateful for all the teams that came out and participated and I believe each team performed well.”

“These scrimmages make us all better and I’m glad we were able to do this.”

This was the 11th annual Girls Basketball Jamboree that Clinton has hosted.

Other area schools included Midway, Lakewood and Union. The jamboree provided each squad three sessions spread out throughout the day against other schools that may not otherwise land on the teams schedules during regular season play. With basketball season still several months away – not starting until November – this early jamboree gives coaches an early opportunity to see what areas will need to be focused on prior to the start of the season.

For Clinton, Owens was mostly pleased with what he saw from his Lady Dark Horses. They had the opportunity to take on Westover, West Carteret and Swansboro in their sessions on Saturday.

“I was really pleased with how our girls executed,” Owens remarked.

Clinton went 22-7 during the 2018-2019 season and finished in second place in the East Central 2A Conference. The Lady Dark Horses made a solid postseason run before falling to the North Carolina School of Science and Math in third round of the NCHSAA 2A State Playoffs, 62-46.

Entering the 2019-2020 season, the Lady Horses are down just three players from last year’s team. One of those key losses from last season, however, was leading scorer Ashlyn Williams, who boasted a team high 24.6 points per game. Clinton, though, essentially featured a three-headed monster last year as rising senior Sha’Nyia Nurse averaged 12.5 points per game and rising junior Isa Banks contributed 13.8 points per game.

Still, Owens recognizes that his team as a whole has some work to do, and will be focusing on several aspects of play as the season draws closer.

“We need to work on boxing out,” the coach said, “but overall I think we did a good job on Saturday.”

https://www.clintonnc.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/web1_Clinton-Logo-1.jpg

Clinton’s Isa Banks directs her offense in a game last season.
https://www.clintonnc.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/web1_CHS-Banks.jpgClinton’s Isa Banks directs her offense in a game last season. File Photos | Sampson Independent

The Lady Dark Horses’ Sha’Niya Nurse pulls up for a jumper last season.
https://www.clintonnc.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/web1_CHS-Sha-Niya-Nurse.jpgThe Lady Dark Horses’ Sha’Niya Nurse pulls up for a jumper last season. File Photos | Sampson Independent
Lady Horses look to reload this season

By Daron Barefoot

Sports Editor

Reach Sports Editor Daron Barefoot at [email protected].