Keenan Wilkins ’24 was twisting, turning, and falling to the court all at the same time Tuesday night.
It was poetry in motion, especially with the basketball softly trickling through the net. The Greenie Dome was deafening at times, but never louder than the aftermath of Keenan’s three-point play with 42.6 seconds to go.
Keenan Wilkins ‘24! With 42.4 seconds to go. Greenies lead 56-54 after the and-one. pic.twitter.com/8oXoEPwiLQ
— Christ School Athletics (@greeniesports) January 11, 2023
Bryson Cokley ’24, who buoyed the team all night with his offense, drew a charge on the next possession. And Jozohn Price ’24, who recently returned to Christ School after months of recovery from a leg injury, helped ice the game with two free throws.
A 61-57 win over Asheville School gives the Greenies (20-1, 2-0) sole possession of first place in the Carolinas Athletic Association.
“I believe in our guys. We (as coaches) believe in them. We talk a lot about competition and competing, and it paid off tonight,” Christ School coach Josh Coley said.
“We kept fighting and showed grit. Bryson Cokley was very impressive. We’ve been hard on him in practice to get him to respond and he stepped up in a major way. I thought we all looked like a deer in the headlights to start, but they settled in well.”
Bryson came into Tuesday averaging 8.9 points per game, but was a tour de force, especially from the perimeter. The Wake Forest recruit had a game-high 25 points, with Keenan and Jamari Briggs ’24 adding 13 points apiece.
Bryson Cokley ‘24 is having himself a game. Ties the game at 41-41 with just under two minutes to go in the third quarter. pic.twitter.com/c2Q99jayuR
— Christ School Athletics (@greeniesports) January 11, 2023
The Greenies hadn’t beaten Asheville School (10-3, 1-1) the past two years and lost last season’s two games by a combined 41 points. It wasn’t looking like Christ School’s night either Tuesday when the Blues were ahead by as many as 14 points in the first half. Coming out of Christ School’s final timeout, the Greenies trailed 54-51 with 1:21 to play.
Making Tuesday’s win all that more impressive is that the Greenies did it without two all-conference players. Emanuel Richards ’23 is still recovering from a collision in last week’s game at Asheville Christian Academy. Lleyton Thomas-Johnson ‘24 is wearing a cast which limits his availability.
“Emanuel is our emotional leader. He brings it every day consistently,” Coach Coley said.
“To not have him on the floor was tough, but he was constantly challenging them on the bench. Even though he’s hurt, he’s still engaged and leading our group, and I’m proud of him for that. He’ll be back soon which is really great news.”
Anthony Robinson ’23 (six points), Jo Ahart ’25 (two), and Jozohn (two) were the remaining scorers for the Greenies. Anthony’s last block of the evening triggered the fast break that led to Keenan’s three-point play.
“Tonight feels good and they deserve it,” Coach Coley said.
“I’m very proud of how they responded and how they fought. This is another testament to how far they’ve come and how hard our staff has worked.”
Christ School is back home Friday for a CAA game of equally great importance when the Greenies host Rabun Gap (12-5, 0-1). Christ School has reached 20 wins for the first time since the 2017-18 season. There are only 15 other teams in school history who have achieved 20 wins.
More photos from Tuesday's varsity game can be viewed at this link.
JV Greenies 58, Asheville School 36
Christ School JV basketball has left no room for error this season.
The Greenies (10-1) have won all their games by double digits and Asheville School got the same treatment Tuesday night.
Calvin Williams ’24 (18 points) and Brewer Nitcher ’25 (15) combined for 33 points. Christ School frittered away some of its 20-point halftime lead, but never enough to let the Blues back into the game.
The rest of the scorers for the Greenies were Will Sherrill '25 (eight points), Will Neumann '24 (four), Buck Duggins '25 (four), Blue Simmons '25 (three), Henry Chapman '25 (three), and James DeYoung '26 (three).