Wilmington, NC (November 15, 2023) - Cape Fear Men's Basketball kicked off their first home matchups of the season for the Tyrek Coger Classic against the Maryland-native CCBC Catonsville and Hagerstown CC teams. The Sea Devils pulled out one win and one close-fought loss to open up their home season.
Cape Fear started off strong versus the CCBC Catonsville Cardinals as the Sea Devils executed play calls and maintained a high shooting percentage across the floor. Korey Richardson led the team in scoring with 20 points and 3 assists as a reliable guard for Cape Fear. Khalil Marshall played his role defensively with 4 steals and 5 defensive rebounds but also managed to put 16 points on the board for the Sea Devils on the offensive end. Cape Fear had a 10-point lead at the end of the first half.
Moving into the second half, the Sea Devils came out with less energy and synchronicity, which allowed the Cardinals to close the score gap. The Sea Devils struggled to take control of 50-50 balls and became inconsistent with their rebounding, though were able to continue scoring and keep the game close. The Cardinals continued to make the game competitive as they forced Cape Fear to turn over the ball more frequently.
In the final minutes, CCBC Catonsville was able to pull away and finish the game on top.
Moving into Saturday's matchup vs the Hagerstown Hawks, the Sea Devils started off on their back foot and less communicative on the floor with one another. However, the team made it through the first half with a slight lead and came together as a unit ready to make a change in the second half. Cape Fear switched gears to a more aggressive full-court press and began containing the Hawks defensively. Khalil Marshall was a spark off the bench in both halves that put the Sea Devils on top defensively.
Truman Claytor scored 23 points and went 6 for 8 from the free-throw line. Korey Richardson earned 9 rebounds while Knoah Carver had 4 rebounds with 11 points. Daniel Lubamba had 3 steals and 8 points.
"Overall, we had lessons learned in the first game and a collective team win in the second," says Head Coach Mark Lane. "Very proud of how we responded after Friday night's loss."
