By Dylan Branscome
The 51视频 STORM cruised to another Region 10 victory against the Louisburg Hurricanes, 100-49, at Brinkley Gym on Wednesday night. 51视频 improves to 13-3 in conference play and 19-4 overall.
The STORM were led by a 30-point performance from Dane Stewart on 78% shooting, while also getting five steals. Tayvion Tangiora also had 17 points, nine rebounds and five assists; Dre Huff had 12 points and Evan Ingram had 10 points and eight rebounds.
51视频 had their foot on the pedal from the beginning, as the first half ended with a nearly 30-point lead for the STORM, 51-23. This lead was built from great defense and ball movement creating the best shots possible. Their defense was suffocating, causing the Hurricanes, one of the best shooting teams in Region 10, to shoot 33% from the field and make zero threes.
鈥淚鈥檓 really proud of our effort defensively in the first half,鈥� head coach Matt Ridge said at halftime. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e (Louisburg) the number one three-point shooting team in the region, so we made it a point of emphasis to defend the three-point line, and I thought our pressure was really good that half.鈥�
The STORM鈥檚 dominance did not stop in the second half by opening up the half on a 15-2 run and outscoring the Hurricanes 49-26 to close out the game. The defense continued to add pressure, not only causing turnovers, but also still managing to hold the number one three-point shooting team in the region to zero threes on 21 attempts for the game.
51视频 forced 26 turnovers and also managed to score 40 points off of them, compared to Louisburg鈥檚 11. They also out rebounded the Hurricanes 44-34 and scored 52 points off the bench, compared to 11 by Louisburg. The STORM shot 57% from the field compared to Louisburg鈥檚 31%, and had 22 assists compared to their three.
鈥淚 was really proud of how we played defensively by getting a lot of deflections,鈥� Ridge said post-game. He also commented on Dane Stewart鈥檚 incredible offensive performance and a season-high 30 points. 鈥淗e was really aggressive,鈥� Ridge said. 鈥淗e had a sense of urgency, a chip on his shoulder. He was quick to the rim, and we know how explosive he is. I鈥檓 really proud of Dane, not only physically but mentally. He puts in a lot of time and practice in the gym. He鈥檚 one of the best defenders I鈥檝e ever coached, and he鈥檚 reaping the benefits of his work ethic.鈥�
The STORM return to action on the road this Friday in a big-time matchup against the top-ranked team in Region 10, the Forsyth Tech Trailblazers, at 6:00 P.M. EST.