NTL BOYS BASKETBALL: CARLING'S DOUBLE-DOUBLE PACES ATHENS IN 73-54 WIN OVER TOWANDA (2021-02-25)

Valley Sports Report
TOWANDA "” Junior Nalen Carling posted a big double-double, and spear-headed a second-quarter run to help Athens to a 73-54 win over Towanda here Thursday night in NTL boys basketball action.

Sophomore Mason Lister knocked down a 3-pointer to give the Wildcats a quick 3-0 lead, and J.J. Babcock added a pair of buckets to close a 9-2 game-opening run.

Towanda rallied to take a 15-13 lead, but junior Troy Pritchard scored off a feed from junior Tucker Brown to tie the game at 15-15 with 35 seconds remaining in the first quarter.

Carling opened the scoring in the second quarter, then drained a 3-pointer with 6:45 left in the half to give Athens a 20-18 lead. Moments later, he added an old-fashioned three-point play off a steal and drive the bucket to extend the lead to 23-18.

Pritchard, again off a feed from Brown, scored from close range to give Athens a 25-18 lead..

After a bucket by Towanda, sophomore Chris Mitchell made a pair of free throws, and Carling knocked down a 3-pointer to make it 30-20.

Carling, who had 13 points in the second quarter, finished off the first half with a putback of an offensive rebound at the buzzer to give the Wildcats a 35-24 lead at the intermission.

Athens stretched its lead to 14 points, at 38-24, on a 3-pointer by Lister on the opening possession of the second half.

Towanda trimmed the deficit to 42-33, but buckets by Babcock and Pritchard pushed the lead to 46-33.

Athens stretched the lead to 14 twice, but Towanda again trimmed the deficit to nine, at 51-42 with 1:10 left in the third quarter.

An old-fashioned three-point play by Mitchell in the final seconds of the third quarter gave the Wildcats a 54-42 lead entering the final eight minutes.

Athens scored the first six points of the fourth quarter on buckets by Carling, Brown and Pritchard to open its lead up to 18 points, at 60-42, with 6:55 left in the game.

After a pair of free throws by Towanda, Athens used another 6-0 spurt - on buckets by Babcock and Brown, sandwiched around a pair of free throws by Carling, to take a 66-44 lead.

Athens took its biggest lead of the game, at 70-47, on a pair of free throws by senior Jonathan Smith with 1:05 left in the game.

Carling led Athens with 22 points, 13 rebounds, five assists, five steals and one blocked shot, while Lister had 12 points and four assists, Pritchard, who made 6 of 7 shots from the field, scored 12 points, and Babcock added 10 points, seven rebounds, and three blocked shots.

Mitchell had eight points and five rebounds in the win, and Brown chipped in with four points, three rebounds, a team-high eight assists, and one blocked shot.

Kolby Hoffman led Towanda with 23 points, including five 3-pointers, and Elias Shrawder added nine points.

Athens, now 12-8, hosts North Penn-Mansfield Friday night, before closing out the regular-season Saturday night at Loyalsock.

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IN PHOTO: Athens junior Nalen Carling.