RED SPRINGS — In a back-and-forth game between a pair of Robeson County teams Thursday, it was Red Springs who made the key shots late against Purnell Swett.

Those key shots made the difference in the final two minutes of a 49-45 Red Devils win.

“We did a better job this time (than last week against Purnell Swett) handling their press, being patient, trying to find the open man, and it paid off at the end,” Red Springs coach Glenn Patterson Jr. said. “At the end we got the last run, and that’s what ended up winning the game.”

Purnell Swett (1-2), who beat Red Springs 67-50 last week in Pembroke, led 44-40 after Chandler McNeill hit a floater with 2:18 remaining. The finishing stretch for Red Springs (1-2) began when Kohnner Oxendine hit a 3-pointer, his second basket of the game, with 1:48 to go to make it 44-43.

“Luckily that one that he did make fell at the perfect time,” Patterson Jr. said. “It put us down by one, and the momentum went our way, the crowd got behind us, and that gave us an energy boost.”

After the Rams missed two free throws, Jaaron Monroe put Red Springs ahead 45-44 with a layup with 48 seconds remaining.

“I saw an opportunity and I just went for it,” Monroe said. “I didn’t think about making it or missing it, I just put it up and it went in.

Makhi Arthur then stole the ball on the Rams’ next possession, leading to a Kaedon Porter basket to mkae it 47-44 with 31 seconds left.

“One of the best defenders on our team stepped up,” Porter said. “He didn’t play much, but when he got in he played hard. He got that steal and was able to create that layup for me, so all the praise to my teammates.”

Garyen Maynor hit one of two free throws for Purnell Swett before Porter hit a pair to put the Red Devils up 49-45 with 13 seconds to go. Purnell Swett missed a 3-point attempt and Porter got the rebound to seal the win.

“(We were) just keeping our composure, keeping our heads up, not playing to the score, playing how we know how to play, just playing ball,” Porter said. “Just doing what we do.”

Purnell Swett was 4-for-12 on free throws in the fourth quarter.

“I think it was just a lack of effort and preparation,” Purnell Swett coach Jeremy Sampson said. “I’ll take the blame for the preparation. We’ve got to do a better job at the free-throw line and be able to make those free throws.”

Porter scored 19 points and Monroe had 11 for Red Springs. Maynor led Purnell Swett with 13 points and McNeill had 11.

A 6-1 spurt late in the first quarter helped the Red Devils to a 13-9 lead at the end of the opening stanza, with Monroe scoring six points and Porter scoring five in the period.

An 8-0 run gave Purnell Swett a 20-19 lead before Oxendine hit a 3-pointer — his only points of the game before his key triple late — to retake the lead with 2:41 left in the half; the Red Devils led 24-22 at intermission.

Purnell Swett used an 8-0 run to take a 30-26 lead with 4:18 left in the third. Red Springs answered with five straight points to take a 31-30 lead, but the Rams scored the last four points of the third to take a 34-31 lead to the fourth.

“That was effort,” Sampson said. “Guys were winning 50-50 balls, driving in and scoring.”

Red Springs took a 35-34 lead on a Johnny Chavis basket with 6:40 to go; Purnell Swett took the lead back when Connor Harris hit a 3-pointer with 5:30 remaining. A traditional 3-point play by Red Springs’ Henry Buie tied the game at 39-39 before baskets by Maynor and McNeill and a free throw by McNeill gave the Rams their 44-40 lead before Red Springs’ stretch run.

“We showed fight the whole game,” Monroe said. “We caught up and we might’ve turned the ball over a couple times, but it’s alright, we still got it back an got the dub.”

Patterson Jr. got his first win as the Red Devils’ head coach after taking over for his father, longtime Red Devils coach Glenn Patterson Sr., last offseason.

“It felt really good especially to get it at home,” Patterson Jr. said. “We had a good turnout tonight, it’s still a school night on a Thursday, but the crowd was energized, behind us the whole way when we got down, and I’m appreciative for it.”

Purnell Swett girls dominate Red Devils

The Purnell Swett girls basketball team played its second straight game with just six active players Tuesday, but the lack of depth wasn’t a factor on the scoreboard as the Lady Rams earned a 64-9 win over Red Springs.

Purnell Swett (3-0) held Red Springs (0-3) without a field goal for the first 6:25 of the game, leading 22-1 before the Red Devils’ first basket. The Rams led 30-3 after the first quarter, 47-5 at halftime and 58-9 at the end of the third quarter.

Seven Rams players are in quarantine due to COVID-19 protocols; two more are out of town. As a result, the team had just six players for the second straight game.

“We’re getting there,” Purnell Swett coach Kalen Eddings said. “Offensively, the core principles, unselfishness and attacking, the mentality’s good. They’re tired; everybody’s gassed. I’m looking forward to tomorrow night (at Pinecrest) and how they respond.”

Kylie Chavis scored 28 points for Purnell Swett, Natalie Evington had 18 and Nyla Mitchell had 17.

Jocelyn Maynor led Red Springs with four points.

“With a game like this I don’t look at the scoreboard; I measure us on minor goals,” Red Springs coach William Judd said. “I had a goal I set for the fourth quarter, let’s hold them under 70 points. We did that. We had another goal of let’s score 15; we didn’t get it, but they worked much harder in the second half than in the first half.”

Purnell Swett travels to Pinecrest on Friday and Red Springs plays at Scotland.