North Atlanta got their basketball season off to a great start last Thursday when they knocked off the Riverwood Raiders on the road by a score of 70 to 45. In front of the Riverwood home crowd, the Dubs took it to the Raiders from the start of the game until the final whistle sounded. North Atlanta led by as much as 19 during the first quarter, and by the end of the first half they held a 34 to 18 lead that they would never relinquish. The Warriors’ offense was clicking all night, and the team shot a combined 52% from the floor, all while giving Riverwood fits on defense. The Raiders struggled to put points on the board and finished the game having shot just 28%.

The Warriors dominated the inside all night, scoring 46 of their 70 points in the paint, and winning the rebound battle by a wide margin. North Atlanta outrebounded Riverwood 43 to 28 and controlled the glass from start to end. The key to North Atlanta’s dominance in the post was senior Montavious Myrick, who pulled in 16 boards and sent back 4 shots. This was a ridiculous defensive output for Myrick, who stifled Riverwood on defense all game while also putting up 9 points and a sweet alley-oop finish off the feed from T.J. Lewis. 

Leading the scoring for North Atlanta was senior swingman Charlie Hamilton, who finished his night with 20 points and started the season off with a dunk off a steal for the Dubs’ first basket of the year. While he had some trouble connecting from deep, Hamilton weaved his way through Riverwood’s defense all night and attacked the basket consistently, resulting in bucket after bucket for the Dubs. Juniors K’hamani Oliviacce and T.J. Lewis were also putting up points, with Oliviacce hitting 3 threes on his way to 13 points, and Lewis shooting an impressive 5 of 6 for 14 points. Oliviacce did a great job of running the offense for North Atlanta and had 8 assists on the night. The Warriors’ attack was smooth all night and Riverwood had no answers. “It was good to start the year off with a win, and hopefully this gives us the momentum we need for the rest of the season,” said Hamilton. 

The Warriors looked great in the first game, and fans can only hope that they keep this up as the schedule gets tougher.