South senior point guard Drew King scored a career-high 28 points, but Mount Tabor star Joel Justus and the Spartans held off the Raiders for an 89-86 basketball victory in the first round of the Central Piedmont Conference tourney at Mount Tabor’s gym.

When King made his fifth 3-pointer of the night with 36 seconds, South had rallied from a 16-point fourth-quarter deficit to tie the score at 83-all.

Brandon Wade’s layup with 23 seconds to go regained the lead for the fourth-seeded Titans. After a South turnover, Jon Land added two free throws, then Wade hit two more in the closing seconds to hold off the Raiders.

“This was a tough one to leave on,” said an emotional King after the season-ending loss. “We didn’t quit. That’s all you can ask.”

The Raiders were down 78-62 with five minutes to play, but charged back, outscoring the Titans 30-21 in the final period.

“I was thinking, ‘Just keep playing hard.’ You don’t want to ever go out not playing hard,” said King, who topped his previous career high of 18.

King had 10 of his points in that final quarter, while guard Tore’ Girty and forward Doug Daugherty scored eight and six, respectively.

Daugherty scored 20 for the Raiders. Center Damien Argrett scored 19 and grabbed 14 rebounds for a double-double. Girty finished with 13.

For the Spartans, now 12-11, center Marcus Newman and Land led the scoring with 26 and 25, respectively. Justus, a 6-foot-6 guard headed to UNC-Wilmington, scored 18 points after being sidelined with a sprained ankle but also contributed eight rebounds and five assists.

“The seniors realized this right here might be the last basketball game, and they went out there and gave it everything they had,” said coach John Davis of South. “The juniors kind of followed the lead. They realized that next year they’ll be in the same situation.”

South trailed 47-36 at halftime with King scoring almost half (15) the Raiders’ points.

“At halftime I kind of challenged them. I said, ‘There was one man (King) that came to play, that does not want his season to end or his career to end.’ I said, ‘Can I have other players to follow him?’ They came out and responded,” said the South coach.

When the Spartans led 78-62 with five minutes to play, South’s chances appeared to be slim.

“Those guys never give up. They play hard for 32 minutes. ... I thought all along we were going to win the basketball game,” said Davis.

Girty started the comeback with a 3-pointer, then King made a 3. It was a 10-point game with 4:15 to play.

Girty’s shot in the lane pulled the Raiders within seven with 1:45 to play, then South got a break. Justus attempted a breakaway slam dunk, which missed, and he received a technical for hanging onto the rim.

King made two technical free throws, and it was 83-78. Argrett scored off an offensive rebound. King’s 3-pointer with 36 seconds left tied it at 83.

Mount Tabor’s Wade then scored after a drive down the left side of the lane to put the Spartans ahead again.

“We needed a big stop down at the other end, and we didn’t get that. The guy made a difficult shot in the lane,” said Davis.

Then the hustling Girty bobbled the basketball while trying to get his team in position to score a tying basket.

“I think he stumbled and lost his balance, and the ball kind of just popped loose,” said the South coach of the turnover. “As hard as he played, what happened in the last 20 seconds of the game doesn’t mean that much. It was what he did to get us to that point.”

South finished with a misleading 7-17 record. The Raiders lost six of their games by a combined 17 points, two of those to powerful North Rowan.

“We lost a lot of close ones. We gave it all we had. We got along great as a team. This is a great team,” said King.

“The dedication these guys gave us on and off the court and the leadership they have as role models in the school ... the student athletes that they are. I really appreciate everything they’ve done for us. That fourth quarter showed how much the game means to them,” said Davis.

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NOTES: King went 8-for-17 on field goals and 7-for-10 at the foul line. ... The Raiders made 11 3-pointers, including three each by Daugherty and Girty. ... South was 30-for-71 (42.3 percent) on field goals, while Mount Tabor was 33-for-74 (44.6 percent). ... Mount Tabor plays top-seeded West Forsyth (18-5) at 7:30 p.m. today in the semifinals.

SOUTH ROWAN (86) — Daugherty 20, Girty 13, Argrett 19, King 28, D. Childers 2, R. Childers, Kennedy, Miller, Torrence 4, Faggart.

MOUNT TABOR (89) — Lamb 25, Wade 11, Newman 26, Guerrero, Justus 18, Ackley 6, Bartz, Cooke, Garmon 3, Bach.

South Rowan 16 20 20 30 — 86