Newport News, VA – As the 2021 portion of this season's basketball schedule was coming to a close, the Apprentice Men's Basketball team welcomed in Cheyney University for a Sunday afternoon match-up.  After being on the road for a majority of their games, the Builders were happy to be back home playing in front of their fans.  Apprentice was looking to head into the Christmas break on a winning note, but they knew, in order to do so, they would need to play a complete game. 

Cheyney jumped out to a 6-2 lead to begin the first half, but baskets by Adrion Wall, Karree Smith and Avin Hawkins would give the Builders their first lead of the game, 12-11 and when Corey Joyner drove in for a layup. Apprentice saw their lead increase to 3 points, 14-11.  After a Jayden Eason steal, he would get the ball to Joyner who drained a 3-pointer, which set the tone for the Builders' offense.  A steal by Caleb Mielewski, which resulted in a coast-to-coast fastbreak layup was followed up by a 3-pointer from Karree Smith, giving Apprentice the double-digit advantage, 27-18.  Smith continued to be a presence on the offensive side of the ball and helped his team jump out to a commanding 15-point lead, with 2 minutes remaining in the half.  Avin Hawkins would also make his presence known and as the teams headed to the locker room, the Builders enjoyed their largest lead of the game, 54-36. 

As the second half got under way, Apprentice waisted no time picking up where they left off, as Corey Joyner and Marion Moore hit back-to-back layups.  Karree Smith continued his dominance and Xavien "Buck" Hunter came in the game and not only ran the offense, but was able to drain two baskets right in front of his fellow football players, who were attending the game.  Coach Kee was able to get all of his players into the rotation and Isiah Jones and Amari Akin took advantage of the opportunity, helping to give the Builders a 40-point lead, 98-58.  As the game was coming to an end, Hunter, once again, connected on a FG, to put Apprentice at the century mark 100-58.  Kurij Harrell completed the scoring for the Builders, as he converted a 3-point play with 22 seconds left in the game, and as the horn sounded, Apprentice would come away with their 5^th win of the season, 103-60.

Karree Smith led the Builders with 23 points, 6 rebounds and 4 steals, while Avin Hawkins came off the bench to score 15 points, hitting a team high three 3-pointers.  Corey Joyner was 6-9 from the field, finishing with 13 points to go along with 7 rebounds and 2 steals, while Xavien "Buck" Hunter finished with 10 points.   As a team, Apprentice grabbed a total of 52 rebounds, with 36 coming on the defensive end and 16 on the offensive end.  The Builders will take a break for the holidays and will return to action on January 6^th when they travel to Fredericksburg, VA to face Mary Washington University.  Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00pm.  However, right now Coach Kee and his team will enjoy this win and look to build off it when they begin the 2022 portion of their schedule.