Gaston College's top moments from 2022-23: No. 7 Basketball celebrates successful "Sophomore Day"

When Gaston College began its athletic program in the summer of 2021, then-athletic director and head coach David "Dickey" Nutt and then-assistant coach Jamie Rosser had to scramble to fill a roster so the Rhinos could begin play in the 2021-22 season.

On Feb. 18, 2023, five of those players - and two others - were honored for their roles in building the program in a 104-75 victory of Hosanna College at Gastonia's Ashbrook High School gymnasium.

"It was 'Sophomore Night' and we wanted to give everybody the opportunity to play, especially those guys like Kirk Scoggins, Dee Merriweather, DaMarco Watson, Joshua Johnson and Dedrick Givens who have been with us for two years," said Rosser, who replaced Nutt as head coach in the summer of 2022 after Nutt left to become an associate head coach at the University of Missouri. "They're strong teammates who have helped restart this program from the ground up - for the first time in 50 years at Gaston, these guys have spent two years playing together!"

Scoggins, Merriweather, Watson, Johnson, Givens, Jordan Guthrie and Caleb McCarty were honored in pregame ceremonies that included all coaches and many of the respective players' family and friends.

In the game, the Rhinos scored 24 of the game's first 34 points and led by nine or more points the rest of the way.

Merriweather (19 points, 5 3-pointers, 3 rebounds, 2 assists), Asil Hoyle (15 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists), Johnson (13 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists), Chaundre Bratcher (13 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists), Jamal Ukaegbu (12 points, 3 rebounds), Guthrie (8 points, 3 rebounds), Watson (6 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists), Ajaden Gray (6 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists), Scoggins (4 points, 2 rebounds), Yarayah Evans (4 points, 2 rebounds), Tyree Bracey (2 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists) and Michael Smith (2 points, 3 rebounds) led a balanced attack in which all 12 Gaston College players who participated scored in the game. (Givens and McCarty didn't play due to injuries.)

"We did what we were supposed to do, which was to win the game," Rosser said. "But I really liked the effort out of our reserves tonight. The guys came off the bench and really played hard and took the game seriously. I was really, really pleased with that."