That Northwood boys basketball has now appeared in two of the last three NCHSAA 3A championships speaks to the level of play the Chargers have reached in recent years.
That the Chargers are once again left disappointed by another title-game loss speaks to their aspirations and desire to earn the ultimate validation for their recent stretch of elite play.
“This one’s going to hurt for a long time,” said Northwood coach Matt Brown following his team’s 65-51 loss to Central Cabarrus.
A win on Saturday would have capped off a terrific year for Northwood. Entering with 28 victories and no losses against NCHSAA competition – Northwood lost to Cannon School and Camden (N.J.) – the Chargers had largely dominated this season. After a strong nonconference schedule, they rolled through conference play without any issues and then maneuvered through their first five playoff games without any real scares.
But against Central Cabarrus, “we just came up short,” said junior small forward Drake Powell, who labeled Central Cabarrus as “obviously a very talented team.”
The Vikings’ 6-of-7 3-point shooting in the first quarter definitely helped. So did their swarming guards on defense, as Northwood committed 19 turnovers. Desmond Kent Jr.’s 16-point, most-valuable-player-earning performance off the bench illustrated the disparity in scoring depth, and Central Cabarrus confidently made 17-of-22 free throws, preventing a Northwood comeback.
Even with Powell impressing with 17 points on 8-of-11 shooting on a night where nothing came easy for the North Carolina commit, the Chargers never looked completely comfortable and were constantly playing a game of catch-up.
In other words, Central Cabarrus, despite its lack of size in comparison with Northwood, certainly looked like a team that has now won 62 of its last 63 games.
“They’ve been practicing and playing good teams, big teams all season,” Northwood senior center Maz Frazier said. “They were kind of used to us, I guess.”
From the Northwood perspective, the Chargers don’t need to look any further than Central Cabarrus for proof of how next season could play out.
Last year, the Vikings dominated, only to come up short in the Western regional final against West Charlotte. Central Cabarrus proved this season that there was no long-term negative effect from last year’s regional loss, the defeat instead appearing to fuel its undefeated campaign.
Northwood will be losing its two giant frontcourt starters, Frazier and Kenan Parrish, which it will need to account for. But senior-year Powell should be a scary sight for opponents. The Chargers will also get back Frederico Whitaker Jr., a scoring point guard who got injured during their postseason run and was sorely missed against Central Cabarrus.
“Obviously it’s going to hurt,” Brown said of not having Whitaker.
Time will tell whether this title loss will catalyze a redemption story for Northwood similar to the one Central Cabarrus completed.
But the Chargers definitely have something to remind themselves of this offseason.
“A lot of motivation,” Powell said of next season. “A lot.”
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