Gaston College picks up huge Region 10 road victory

Gaston College has gotten off to a great restart of its basketball program this season.

But the Rhinos may have outdone themselves on Thursday by knocking off Region 10-leading Spartanburg Methodist 90-86 on the road.

The win ended a two-game losing streak and improved Gaston College's record to 11-7 overall and 2-3 in Region 10. Spartanburg Methodist, which had won 69-56 at Gaston College on Dec. 8 and has received votes in the past two NJCAA national polls, fell to 12-3 overall and 2-1 in Region 10.

Sophomore guard Damon Davis led the Rhinos with 27 points, five rebounds, seven assists and five steals. Other key contributors were Dee Merriweather (19 points), Jaylen Bates (13 points, 6 rebounds, 3 steals), Dedrick Givens (10 points, 7 rebounds) and Zavion Jackson (7 points, 5 rebounds).

"I'm so proud of our guys tonight," Gaston College coach David "Dickey" Nutt said. "We played with such passion and urgency on both ends of the floor. I thought our defense set the tone for us with a new line up. Dedrik, Zavion and Jalen provided us some really strong front court defense with Damon and Kalil (Camara) also played well."

Davis scored in double figures in each half while handling point guard duties for much of the contest.

"Damon Davis had an explosive game offensively and defensively," Nutt said. "Josh (Johnson) and Dee Merriweather gave us some good minutes as well. Just so proud of our guys and the resilience that we showed going down the stretch."

Givens and Bates each hit two clinching free throws in the final 23 seconds to stave off a Pioneers' comeback.

Gaston College never trailed in the game, leading by as many as 21 points (40-21), before knocking off the last remaining unbeaten team in Region 10 play.

"There have been games where we just let go of the rope," Nutt said. "We didn't do that tonight. This was a big win for us on the road in conference play."

The Rhinos return to action on Sunday at 2 p.m. at North Gaston High School when they host defending Region 10 champion Brunswick Community College.