Ridge View rebounds after slow start, rolls past Daniel in Class 4A playoffs

It took about a quarter for Ja’Von Benson to get fully acclimated to his team’s second-round challenger Daniel on Saturday night.

Early on, the 6-foot-8 Ridge View standout and South Carolina signee fumbled some passes and missed out on some loose basketballs.

“He did come out slow, I don’t necessarily know why,” Ridge View coach Yerrick Stoneman said after his team’s 65-48 victory over the Lions in the Class 4A playoffs. “Sometimes in these games, you get the jitters.”

When his team was down 8-7 after a tepid first quarter, Benson lit up everything that was purple and silver. He had eight points and four rebounds in the second quarter, scoring a go-ahead basket to start the period and ending it with an electrifying dunk.

“He really came on quick after that dunk to end the half,” Stoneman said. “I’m proud of the way he stepped up. Sometimes you don’t play your best when you’re double-teamed and triple-teamed in the post. He wasn’t making good decisions at the time, but he stuck with it and played hard.”

Benson finished the night with 18 points and 12 rebounds as the two-time defending state champion Blazers (20-7) knocked off Daniel with little trouble. Ridge View goes to Greenville on Tuesday in the third round.

Besides the points and rebounds, what Benson really did was calm down Daniel leading scorer Brenton Benson. The Lions’ Benson had just six points and four rebounds on the night.

Ridge View started off the second quarter with a 9-2 run and outscored the Lions 24-11 to take a 31-19 lead at the half.

The Blazers built a 39-24 lead before Daniel (23-6) got three straight baskets to cut the lead to nine points. Just as that short run awakened the Lions crowd in the gym, Benson finger-rolled a ball into the net and then returned with another basket to make it 43-30.

Ridge View enjoyed a 49-32 lead going into the final quarter, where again Daniel got within nine points on a pair of Charlie Smith 3-pointers and an Andrew Latiff putback.

Ridge View put out the fire with a Cincere Scott 3-pointer, then baskets from Tyler Rice and Patrick Jenkins, to take a 56-40 lead with five minutes to go.

Four of the team’s five starters were in double figures. Benson, Rice’s 13 points, Scott’s 10 points and Davion Everett’s 10 points contributed to the Blazers keeping control of the Lions.

Stoneman credits the fifth starter, Jenkins, with doing a lot of work on the floor above and beyond points and rebounds. The senior forward had six points and nine boards.

“He’s by far the smartest basketball player that we’ve got on the court,” Stoneman said. “He gets Ja’Von in the right spot, he directs our guards. He definitely makes us a better basketball team.”

D: Bobby Taylor 15, Latiff 8, Smith 8, Lawson 7, Benson 6, McAfee 4. R: Ja’Von Benson 18, Tyler Rice 13, Cincere Scott 10, Davion Everett 10, Jenkins 6, Jeter 4, Jackson 2, Spraggins 2.

This story was originally published February 22, 2020 at 10:14 PM.