Central, SC – Southern Wesleyan picked up their first win of the 2024-25 season on Saturday afternoon as they took down the Toccoa Falls Screaming Eagles in an 80-70 final score.
The Warriors shot 45.2% from the field and were 60% from the charity mark. Senior RJ Bell led the team with 17 points. Aaron Tims and Christopher Osobaye also had double digits as Tims had 11 points and Osobaye had 10 points. Of the 16 assists, Eric Hackett had five.
Southern Wesleyan pulled down 51 rebounds with Aaron Tims having 10 to give him a double-double. Che Smith had the lone block of the game. The Warriors had seven steals.
Game Vitals
Final: Southern Wesleyan 80, Toccoa Falls 70
Records: Southern Wesleyan (1-3) Toccoa Falls (0-2)
How It Happened
Southern Wesleyan and Toccoa Fals battled for the first two minutes of the match until Che Smith broke through to lay the ball up into the basket. Reco Hallmon passed the ball out beyond the arc to RJ Bell who fired off a three pointer to extend the Warriors lead to five. A three pointer by Will Gray-Watson allowed the Screaming Eagles to stay within two. Bell hit another three pointer, but Toccoa Falls answered with another three pointer out of the hands of Gray-Watson. With just under twelve on the clock, Bobby Taylor sent the ball out to Eric Hackett. Hackett sunk a three pointer to extend the Warriors lead to 20-9. Seconds later, Jamarras McCray tipped the ball into the basket off a rebound to extend the Warriors lead to thirteen points. Jeremiah Williams laid the ball up into the basket, and then got the and-one shot as he was fouled by McCray on the play. With ten minutes left in the half, Eric Hackett collected a defensive rebound and sent the ball down the court to Raheem Brizendine. Brizendine sunk the three pointer off the fast break to allow the Warriors to maintain their thirteen point lead. The Warriors pushed on, but the Screaming Eagles answered with a layup off the hands of Williams and then a three pointer by Tyrece Freeman. Toccoa Falls would not go down easily as Will Gray-Watson hit another three pointer. Emmanuel Hughes laid the ball up into the basket to put Toccoa Falls within six of the Warriors, but a last second jump shot by Che Smith gave the Warriors a 38-30 point advantage going into the locker room.
The Warriors charged out of the gate in the second half as a steal by RJ Bell led to a layup by Aaron Tims. Toccoa Falls pushed on as Jeremiah Williams stole the ball away and raced down the court for a layup. However, back-to-back layups by Eric Hackett and Bell allowed the Warriors to extend their lead to thirteen. Will Gray-Watson sent the ball out to Tyrece Freeman who hit a three pointer to put Toccoa Falls right back to within ten points of Southern Wesleyan. The Screaming Eagles would not relent as Randall Robinson knocked down a three pointer and then Kaleb Thomas put up a jump shot. Aaron Tims sent the ball down the court to RJ Bell who laid it up into the basket. Reco Hallmon was fouled as he sunk a three pointer to send him to the charity mark for the and-one basket. Hallmon put it in with ease to give the Warriors a 56-43 point lead. Will Gray-Watson laid the ball up for the Screaming Eagles, but Ceejay Jordan tipped the ball into the basket off a rebound seconds later to keep the Warriors on top by thirteen. RJ Bell and Raheem Brizendine put up several layups. With just over six minutes left on the clock, Emmanuel Hughes hit a three pointer for Toccoa Falls. Brizendine took the ball down the court quickly and then laid it up to give the Warriors a sixteen point lead. However, the Screaming Eagles chipped away at the Warriors lead with the help of a three pointer by Randall Robinson. The Warriors would end up on top as they claimed an 80-70 victory over Toccoa Falls.
What's Next
Southern Wesleyan will travel to Spartanburg, SC to take on USC Upstate in exhibition play on November 19. They will then return to Historic Tysinger Gymnasium on November 20 as they take on Morris College at 7 pm. The Warriors will open up Conference Carolinas action on the road as they travel to Wilson, NC on November 23 as they take on the Barton Bulldogs.
