Greeson does in Hornet boys in basketball

He didn’t look like your typical run stopper — not in the basketball sense, anyway.

High Point Central’s Brandon Greeson came off the bench when the Bison needed points inside and put an end to a huge Salisbury rally. Central’s backup big man might have looked more at home on the line of scrimmage instead of the free-throw line, but he helped his squad to a 73-60 victory in the 2ACentral Carolina Conference matchup Monday night.

“He’s just huge,”Hornets head coach Drew Mathews said of Greeson, who finished with 15 points and 13 rebounds. “He’s a great rebounder, physically stronger than any of us. That was the difference in the game. They got the rebounds and putbacks and we were just struggling to get the rebounds.”

The Hornets (3-13 overall, 1-6 CCC) found themselves trailing the second-place team in the league 36-20 at halftime. Sharp-shooter Randall Jones then started a furious rally, hitting back-to-back 3-pointers and a layup to pull Salisbury within 40-32. Jamar Conners’ putback made it 42-36 when Greeson trotted onto the court.

Central (9-9, 6-1) immediately got him the ball in the paint. He connected for a layup, fed Derrick Bryant inside for two more on the next possession and converted a three-point play off a putback the next time down the court to stretch the lead back to 13.

The Hornets never closed within single digits again.

“He could dominate if he learned to stay out of foul trouble, ”Bison head coach Steve Johnson said of Greeson. “He takes up a lot of space. He’s been real consistent the last four, five games.”

The Hornets had all the foul trouble this time around. Mathews’ young squad lost key seniors Jones and Boo Blount early and often thanks to three first-half fouls. Blount, the point guard, got his fourth with 6:10 to play in the third quarter.

“They got in foul trouble and that changed the game, ”Mathews said. “We had to go with a sophomore and a junior in their place.”

The biggest surprise for the Hornets may have been a freshman. Conners, who finished with 13 points and 10 rebounds, was all over the court — he was so active his jersey was completely soaked through before the end of the third quarter.

“Overall this was his best game, ”Mathews said. “He did some things offensively and he got better defensively tonight. I’m real pleased with him.”

So were his teammates.

“The team was encouraging me to play better,”Conners said. “They gave me a boost, kept telling me that I could do it.”

Mathews also praised the play of André Bruce and Jack Campbell, who each had solid games and showed that the Hornets are coming along from their roster’s midseason make-over.

Monday night’s game alone was proof of that — Central won the first meeting 75-35.

“When you beat a team as badly as we did the last time, there’s a tendency to have a letdown,”Johnson said. “Last time we got the big lead and they folded. This time they were scrapping, making good shots.”

And that’s good enough. For now.

“We played better than the first time,”Mathews said. “We played under control, started doing some good things. We just didn’t do enough good things over a long period of time.

“We’re young and working hard. The kids are learning.”

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Notes: Jones paced the Hornets with 18 points, but outside of his third-quarter surge, he had to take quite a few shots to get his points. … The Hornets forced 19 turnovers but committed 21. … Central shot 28-for-62 from the field (45 percent), while Salisbury was at 23-for-52 (44). … The Hornets travel to Lexington on Friday, while the Bison play host to Ledford, which has three CCClosses.

HIGHPOINTCENTRAL (73) — Keever 5, Smither, Baker 20, White 2, Crump 2, Bryant 9, Warlick 7, Wagner 1, Thomas 12, Knox, Greeson 15.

SALISBURY (60) — Campbell 4, Geter 3, Knauf 6, Jones 18, Blount 7, Davis 1, Conners 13, Bruce 6, Fields 2, Miller, Roten.

HPCentral 18 18 17 20 — 73

Salisbury 11 9 19 21 — 60