Jeff Linville | The News

East Surry’s Eli Gilbert scored 15 points, one of four Cardinals with nine or more points in a balanced attack.

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DANBURY — East Surry got off to a hot start and kept the pedal down for a 61-43 win over North Surry late Tuesday.

This was the first conference road game for the Cardinals after beating Surry Central and losing to West Stokes at home.

“Anytime you can win one on the road in this conference it’s a good win,” said Coach Jason Anderson.

“We got off to a quick start,” he said. “We maintained momentum throughout the game and never was really threatened.”

The Cards went up 22-6 after the first quarter and stretched that to 33-14 at the break.

The squad came out with good defensive intensity, forced turnovers and converted transition buckets, Anderson said.

East Surry saw quality minutes from its bench. The coach subbed in early in the first half, which helped keep the starters fresh for the second half.

Anderson said he has been emphasized foul shooting and rebounding in practice lately, and his boys did both better on this night.

The team has been leaving some points on the floor by missing the front ends of one-and-ones, he noted.

“In the first half we were 10-12 from the foul line,” he said, good for 83 percent. “Attacking the basket and forcing them to foul us was a big part of building that lead.”

For the game, the Cards went 19-26 (73.1 percent) at the line.

“We dictated the tempo of the game,” he said. “We’ve got to maintain that energy through four quarters — we could have done a better job there.”

He said the boys played well and played smart. When they needed to be disciplined, the Cards did so.

East showed good scoring balance with four players scoring nine or more points, led by Scott Meredith with 18. More importantly, the guard posted four assists without a single turnover.

Eli Gilbert pitched in with 15 points, seven rebounds and three assists.

Seth Brim had a very efficient night, missing just one field goal while scoring 12 points. He was 3-4 from the field and 4-5 from the foul line.

Carson didn’t score a point, but provided seven rebounds off the bench.

Next up for the Cards are the returning conference champions, Winston-Salem Prep.

The Phoenix are undefeated, whipping North Stokes by 52 and South Stokes by 42.

Anderson said he would scout Prep tonight against Bishop McGuinness.

“I told the team to look at this as a challenge,” he said. Some teams know that Prep is quick and tall and may go into the game expecting to lose, he said, so he wants his team to rise to the occasion.

Score By Quarters

ES 22 11 11 17 = 61

NS6 8 16 13 = 43

Scoring

East Surry

Scott Meredith 18, Eli Gilbert 15, Seth Brim 12, Tyler Pardue 9, Drew Alley 3, Travon Ricketts 2, Devin Benton 2.

North Stokes

Matt Hopkins 22, Jonah Slate 10, Garrett Wood 5, Dakota Young 3, Mason Sands 2, Chase Martin 1.