TEACHEY —East Bladen High beat Wallace-Rose Hill High for the third time in the last four weeks on Friday to win the Wallace-Rose Hill Holiday Tournament, 53-45.

The Eagles have now won nine straight after an 0-2 start.

The Bulldogs opened the game with a 6-3 spurt, but baskets by Alex Stephens put East Bladen up 7-6 late in the first quarter. The two teams traded buckets and the Eagles took a 9-8 lead heading into the second stanza.

East Bladen’s offense got turned up a notch while its defense continued to stifle Wallace-Rose Hill. Matt Massengil and Devonte Beatty each canned three-pointers during a 10-1 spurt to open the quarter for East Bladen. The Bulldogs answered with an 8-5 run to end the half trailing by 24-17.

In the third quarter, East Bladen extended its lead to 36-26 late in the third quarter and went into the final 8 minutes with a 37-28 edge.

Beatty all but carried the Eagles down the stretch, filling the net with 11 points as East Bladen opened the fourth quarter with a 10-5 run for a 47-33 lead. Free throws helped hold off any Bulldog rally attempts.

Batty led East Bladen with 20 points and eight rebounds, while Stephens added 16 points and six rebounds. Both were named to the all-tournament team for the Eagles. Jaquan Jones scored 12 points and grabbed 10 rebounds.

***

First round

***

The Eagles were stretched to the limit Thursday, but managed to stave off a pesky Eastern Wayne High for a 57-54 win in the opening round of the Wallace-Rose Hill Holiday Tournament.

East Bladen found itself trailing by a 13-8 margin midway through the first quarter, but the Eagles finished the period with a 4-0 spurt to cut the gap to 13-12.

That momentum never carried over into the second stanza, as the Warriors opened the quarter with a 9-0 run that extended the lead to 22-12. But the Eagles answered with a 15-2 run sparked by three easy buckets by Jaquan Jones and was capped by a dunk from Devonte Beatty.

Eastern Wayne managed to finish the half with a 6-3 spurt that knotted the game at 30-30.

The Warriors opened the third quarter with a 7-2 push that propelled them to a 37-32 edge, but East Bladen revved up its offense midway through the third quarter and manufactured an 8-2 spurt and gave the Eagles a 40-39 lead going into the fourth frame.

Matt Massingill found his stroke early in the final 8 minutes and canned a pair of three-pointers that helped East Bladen build a 12-2 run and 52-41 lead. But the Eagles then went cold, and the Eastern Wayne began pumping in the points.

With just 2 minutes left to play, the Warriors had cut the East Bladen lead to 52-50. Beatty ended the scoring drought for the Eagles with a basket 30 seconds later and, from there, the two teams all but traded points. Free throws by Farrell Murchison and Massengill helped seal the three-point win.

Beatty lead East Bladen with 16 points and 20 rebounds. Jones added 16 points for the Eagles.