Lower Richland boys win region, eye deep playoff run under former star Jo Jo English
Winning state championships, not region crowns was the goal when Jo Jo English took over the Lower Richland basketball program.
Three years after taking the job at his alma mater, English hopes he has a group to make a title run. The Diamond Hornets showed championship toughness by rallying from a 14-point, second-half deficit to defeat Dreher, 57-53, on Thursday night.
With the win, Lower Richland wins the Region 5-3A championship. It was the Diamond Hornets’ first region title since 2017, the same year as its last state championship.
Lower Richland will host Camden in the first-round of the playoffs on Tuesday. LR will be at home for the first three rounds if it keeps winning.
Lower Richland made it to the third round last year before losing to Crestwood.
“Our preseason is over and we get ready for what I call the regular season. We are trying to make it through these five games. That is the reason why I came here,” said English, who was a player on the Diamond Hornets’ back-to-back state championship teams in 1987-88. “Don’t take it as disrespect. Winning the region is a powerful accomplishment especially for these boys but it is not the ultimate goal.”
English said this year’s team might be the first “true team” he’s had at Lower Richland. He credits the team’s hard work in the preseason and their strong bond with each other.
Thursday’s game had a playoff-type atmosphere and crowd and carried big ramifications for Dreher as well. The Blue Devils had a chance to win the region and had previously defeated LR, 52-43, on Jan. 23.
Dreher looked in control, early in the second half. The Blue Devils started the quarter on a 7-0 run and led 36-22.
But Lower Richland’s defense and size up front started to take over. Sophomore Mario James had a few big steals in the second half and tied the game at 44 with a layup. Presbyterian commit Alex Atkinson gave the Diamond Hornets their first lead since the second quarter with a slam off a rebound to make it 48-46.
“We just had to bite down,” English said. “They just refuse to lose. I got into him hard in the locker room at halftime and they told us to get out. That is the good sign of a good team when they take ownership over it. They fought back and did what they had to do.”
Atkinson finished with a game-high 20 points. James had 16. La’quaree Glenn and Ethan Mays each added 11.
Glenn put the game away with a pair of free throws to make it 55-51 with 23 seconds left.
Martaz Owens led Dreher with 20 points. The Blue Devils will be at Darlington in the first round of the playoffs.
Dutch Fork girls win region crown
Michaela Fairwell scored 20 points as Dutch Fork defeated Lexington, 64-43, to win the Region 4-5A championship.
It was the Silver Foxes’ first region championship since 2014 and comes in the first season for coach Candance Bush, who took over for Hall of Fame coach Faye Norris.
Dutch Fork finished the regular season at 22-3 and went 8-0 in region play.
Farewell went over 1,000 career points on her first basket of the game. Antoinet Cheeseboro added nine points for Dutch Fork.
Thursday’s Scores
Girls
Chapin 50, River Bluff 40
C: Reagan Haggard 14, Freeman 9, Holmes 8
Dutch Fork 64, Lexington 43
DF: Michaela Fairwell 20, Cheeseboro 9, Jackson 8, Kinard 8. L: Sydni Anderson 11, Godfrey 8, Lytes 8.
Gilbert 58, Swansea 31
G: Blythe Price 13, Ahleira Leaphart 12, Alexis Gartmon 12, Campbell 8, Adams 8, Godfrey 2, Ballington 2.
Lower Richland 52, Dreher 18
LR: Sumter 9, Isaac 8, Hiller-Johnson 8, Weeks 6, Foster 5, Nowlin 4,Curry 4, Green 3, J. Dingle 2, Cunningham 2, Thompson 1. D: Diamond Berry 12, Aquil 4, Murphy 2.
Orangeburg-Wilkinson 64, Brookland-Cayce 19
Keenan 54, Fairfield Central 51
Saluda 42, Mid-Carolina 41
Boys
Lexington 64, Dutch Fork 56
L: Cam Scott 20, Jaxon Prunty 16, Coulter Bell 11. DF: Jayden Walker 15, Justus Bell 14, Govan 9
Lower Richland 57, Dreher 53
D: Martaz Owens 16, Tony Baker 10, Barr 8, Singleton 6, Hollins 5, Brown 4, Glasscho 2, and Kelley Simuel 2. LR: Alex Atkinson 20, Mario James 13, Ethan Mays 11, La’Quaree Glenn 11, Adams 2
Mid-Carolina 38, Saluda 34
Newberry 64, Abbeville 49
Orangeburg-Wilkinson 42, Brookland-Cayce 40
River Bluff 58, Chapin 43
C: Bruenig 4, Melvin 1, Francis 5, Carter Coggins 12, Collins 7, Ray 4, Peterson 7, Nuttall 1, McMahon 2. RB: Etheridge 7, Avery 6, Yasir Cromer 14, Bearden 7, Robbins 9, Green 3, Jones 3, Chapman 4, Wilson 2
This story was originally published February 8, 2024 at 11:41 PM.
