Kinston (#12) Rolls Past NCSSM (#21) in NCHSAA 2A First Round
Kinston (#12) Rolls Past NCSSM (#21) in NCHSAA 2A First Round
The #12-seeded Kinston Vikings shook off last week’s narrow conference championship disappointment by defeating the #21-seeded NC School of Science and Math 76-46 in the first round of the NCHSAA 2A playoffs. With a focused urgency from the opening tip, Kinston raced to a 23-14 first-quarter lead before outscoring the Unicorns 39-20 in the second half.
“We came with urgency,” said Head Coach Perry Tyndall. “I thought we had a really good practice yesterday—we were flying around. I could sense the guys were hungry, had a little bit of a bad taste in their mouth still, and it showed in practice. When you practice well it correlates, and it did. I thought we set the tone on how hard we played early. At halftime we challenged with some things and they came out and answered tremendously. We had one turnover in the second half, and that’s big. The runs come when you take care of the ball.
“Saturday left a bad taste in our mouth; 38 points is not anything in our vocabulary,” he added, referencing the Vikings’ 39-38 conference tournament loss to Southwest Onslow. “We knew we had to play with urgency, pace, and discipline as well. We were very unselfish—it’s good basketball, it’s Kinston basketball, it’s who we are.”
A balanced Viking offense was led by Jermarion Washington and Genesis Wiggins with 14 points apiece. Tyreek Copper added 12 points, while senior guard Isaiah Parsons finished with eight. Despite a 24-point showing from NCSSM’s Ethann Burkett, the Vikings’ second-half lockdown effort proved decisive.
“I don’t really worry about the points like that,” Wiggins said. “I just worry about the defensive end and getting rebounds—the more rebounds we get, the more offensive chances.”
Parsons, tasked with guarding NCSSM’s top threats, credited the team’s defensive intensity. “Coach Tyndall always puts me on their best guard,” Parsons said. “It’s my mission to complete that assignment—not necessarily stop them, but contain them. Defense wins games, and that is what we did tonight.”
Kinston now turns its attention to the second round, traveling Friday night to face the #5-seeded Northeastern as the Vikings continue their postseason pursuit.
