Vikings boys’ basketball downs the Eagles 59-41
The Cape Henlopen boys’ basketball team used a second-half surge to deny a pesky Smyrna side in a 59-41 win Jan. 3 in Lewes.
Ahead by just a bucket on the 1-6 Eagles early in the second half, the Vikings embarked on a 28-10 run to remove any and all drama from what had been a competitive affair. Senior guard Drew Zimmerman tallied nine points in the course of the Cape onslaught, including seven unanswered at one point, while sophomore guard Jayden Dukes scored all eight of his points and knocked down a pair of three-pointers.
Trey Leggins left his fingerprints all over the game for the Vikings, racking up 15 points, six rebounds, six assists, four steals and a blocked shot. The senior wing provided Cape with much-needed offensive punch during a rocky, turnover-plagued first half. Leggins scored nine points before intermission, allowing his team to establish a slim lead at the break.
Coach Steve Re bemoaned the Vikings’ early struggles.
“We’re still not comfortable playing together,” Re said. “We have a really hard time finding chemistry because we’ve been super inconsistent. Our guys have to learn and embrace their roles instead of forcing things like we did in that first half.”
Zimmerman sat out Cape’s last game with an illness but looked to be at 100% in this one. He finished with 17 points, seven boards and three assists, canning two long-balls along the way. Freshman Lamar McCoy came up huge in his first varsity start, scoring six points on two threes and directing traffic from the point guard spot. Sophomore forward Damian Robinson also cracked Cape’s starting five for the first time, and he responded with a four-point, three-rebound night. The Vikings got another productive outing from junior big man Jack Schell, who notched two points, eight boards and two blocks.
McCoy reflected on his breakout night.
“I’ve been putting work in all summer to be ready for this,” he said. “It doesn’t matter to me that I’m a freshman. I just gotta go out there and kill. My role is to just run the offense, keep things under control, and take open shots when I get them.”
Cape (5-2, 3-1 Henlopen North) shot 47% from the floor and forced 21 turnovers.
Cape girls take down Smyrna
The Cape girls’ basketball team poured in 26 second-quarter points to build a 33-26 lead at halftime Jan. 3 at Smyrna. The Vikings scored only 21 points in all of the second half, but held the Eagles to 20 en route to a 54-46 win.
The Vikings improved to 6-2, while Smyrna dropped to 3-3.
Freshman Amalia Fruchtman led the way with 21 points, 14 rebounds, four blocked shots and three assists. Fellow freshman Faith Re tallied 15 points, four assists, three rebounds, two steals and a block.
Ja’Onna Lee scored seven points to go along with nine rebounds. Hayden Hudson collected 13 rebounds and four blocks.
