Waltersboro, SC - Cape Fear Community College made the most of a gutsy performance in the opening round of the Region 10 college basketball championships. The Sea Devils led Aiken Technical College wire-to-wire in a 78-74 victory.
Now the Sea Devils will take a 19-11 record into the semi-final showdown against undefeated Spartansburg Methodist College Friday at 5 pm. Spartansburg's record is 30-0 for the season. The winner of that game is headed to the Region 10 Championship Saturday at 2 PM. And the winner of that game will carry the Region 10 banner to the National Championships in Hutchinson, Kansas.
Landon Atterberry led the way with 26 points, while the Region 10 Player of the year Faronte Drakeford added 20. Cape Fear is playing this tournament without All-Region second team member Anthony Williams who is missing because of family issues.
The Sea Devils built a lead as high as 23 points in the second half, but Aiken Tech battled back in the closing seconds.
"We played very well for 30 minutes. But we must play for 40 minutes to give us a shot at beating the #1 team in the country and getting a berth to the championship game ", said Cape Fear Coach Ryan Mantlo.
The Sea Devils are 14-3 in games played away from home, 8-2 in road games and 6-1 in neutral site games.