No. 2 North Mecklenburg 85, West Charlotte 59
North Mecklenburg’s boys’ basketball team began the second half of its MECKA 4A schedule the same way it ended the first – with a win.
The Vikings, ranked second in the Sweet 16, thrashed rival West Charlotte 85-59 on Wednesday night to remain undefeated in conference play.
Kendall Coles scored 23 points and Jaylen McManus added 21 points for North Mecklenburg, which had four players finish in double figures against the Lions.
Creighton commit Davion Mintz had 12 points, six rebounds and five assists, and Derrick Maxwell 10 for the Vikings, who won their fifth-straight game.
While the final margin was 26 points, North Mecklenburg was never seriously challenged after opening up a 19-6 lead after the first quarter.
The Vikings went on to take a 38-14 lead by the halftime break, and go up by 34 points by the end of the third quarter before North Mecklenburg coach Duane Lewis pulled most of his starters – primarily Mintz and McManus – early in the fourth quarter.
The Vikings would lead by as many as 37 points three times in the final period, the last at 71-34 on Maxwell’s three-point play with 6 minute, 11 seconds remaining.
Jalen Knight scored 16 points to lead the Lions, who have now lost five of their past six games. Melvin Huntley came off the bench to add 11 points and a game-high eight rebounds, all coming in the fourth quarter, and Deangelo Epps had 10.
Records
West Charlotte 7-8, 4-3 MECKA 4A; North Mecklenburg 16-2, 7-0.
Worth mentioning
West Charlotte’s girls survived a second-half comeback to upset North Mecklenburg, ranked 16th in the Sweet 16, 55-52. The Lions improved to 6-11, 3-4 MECKA 4A, while the Vikings fell to 13-5, 4-3. … Mintz scored his 1,000th career point with the opening basket of Wednesday’s game.
What's next
West Charlotte hosts MECKA 4A rival Vance on Friday night; that same evening, North Mecklenburg plays at Hopewell.
This story was originally published January 27, 2016 at 11:06 PM with the headline "No. 2 North Mecklenburg 85, West Charlotte 59."