Smyrna’s Anthony Watson puts up a shot in the second half of Smyrna’s 71-50 win over St. Elizabeth at St. Elizabeth High School on Thursday night.
Smyrna players celebrate on the bench after a dunk from Ja’vier Worthy in the second half of Smyrna’s 71-50 win over St. Elizabeth at St. Elizabeth High School on Thursday night.
Smyrna’s Charlie Taylor puts up a shot in the second half of Smyrna’s 71-50 win over St. Elizabeth at St. Elizabeth High School on Thursday night.
St. Elizabeth’s Eric Hicks (No. 13) puts up a shot between Smyrna’s Charlie Taylor (No. 2) and Caleb Matthews (No. 10) in the first half of Smyrna’s 71-50 win over St. Elizabeth at St. Elizabeth High School on Thursday night.
Smyrna’s Javier Worthy dunks over St. Elizabeth’s Nathan Thomas in the second half of Smyrna’s 71-50 win over St. Elizabeth at St. Elizabeth High School on Thursday night.
WILMINGTON– The Smyrna boys basketball team put it all together Thursday.
That made it a great night for the Eagles, and a rough night for St. Elizabeth.
No. 7 Smyrna splashed nine 3-pointers, pounded away on the boards and got four players into double figures on the way to a much easier than expected, 71-50 victory at the St. E Center.
“Our boys just executed our game plan, and they did it pretty well,” Eagles coach Andrew Mears said. “They played very unselfish. They got stops on the defensive end, and that just led to easy baskets.”
Smyrna (13-3) dominated from the opening tip. Ja’vier Worthy dropped a 3-pointer from the right corner, Jaymeir Garnett scored on a sharp pass from Caleb Matthews and Matthews followed with an NBA-range 3-pointer that prompted a timeout from the sixth-ranked Vikings.
Just 1:37 into the game, the Eagles led 8-0.
“We had a few go in early for us, and that just set the tone for the night,” Mears said.
Smyrna stayed hot, as Garnett scored on a Worthy assist before Brian Miles could get St. E (11-5) on the board with a 3-pointer. Then Matthews ripped another 3 from the left wing and Jerry Williams made a free throw to make it 14-3, with 3:57 still remaining in the first quarter.
The Eagles led 18-9 after the opening period, then 32-23 at the half. Then Garnett started the second half with a 3-ball, and Williams scored off a Garnett assist to push the lead to 37-23 and force another Vikings timeout.
“We put together four good quarters, with some contributions from guys off the bench, so from an all-around standpoint it was a pretty good win,” Mears said.
Matthews continued to hit from deep, finishing with five 3-pointers on his way to 17 points. He said St. E spent much of the night in a zone, unlike the tight man-to-man the Vikings played against him in last year’s meeting.
“It was actually unexpected,” Matthews said. “Last year, they didn’t let me get many off. Tonight, I came out and I was open. I was surprised that they played a zone tonight, so I just knocked down shots.”
The Eagles really got it rolling in the fourth quarter, scoring the first 14 points. Worthy started the run with a monster dunk that got the Smyrna sideline going, and Garnett finished it with an offensive rebound that pushed the margin to 65-36.
“It was just adrenaline,” Worthy said of his highlight-reel jam. “I didn’t know anything; I just went up and dunked. I’ve been suffering an ankle injury right now, so I’m surprised I got up that high.”
Smyrna outrebounded St. Elizabeth 39-18, as Worthy finished with 19 points and nine boards and Garnett — a freshman — had 12 points and a game-high 14 rebounds. Williams also scored 11 for the Eagles, who shot an even 50 percent (30 of 60) from the field.
Miles came off the bench to score 14 for the Vikings. Eric Hicks added 11, and Jordan Money chipped in 10.
Contact Brad Myers at bmyers@delawareonline.com. Follow on Twitter: @BradMyersTNJ.