The start to Christmas break could not have come with a better start for Chattanooga Christian School's boys' basketball team.
Running up and down the floor with intensity, the Chargers scored the opening 40 points to extend their season-long winning streak to nine games with a 75-11 home blowout of Whitwell on Thursday.
"You don't want to tell a team to stay back and don't do anything, because in practice you drill intensity, intensity, passing lane, passing lane," CCS coach Eddie Salter said. "Our guys really pushed the ball well and took away the passing lanes. It was great to see them get after it on the court."
After topping former region rivals Boyd Buchanan, Notre Dame and Silverdale Baptist Academy by close margins early this season, the Chargers unleashed their full power against the Tigers.
Traveon Scott had four steals in the opening quarter, while 6-foot-7 senior Michael Houge crammed a pair of slam dunks off backboard passes from Grant Van Meter and Andrew Davick.
Houge scored all 13 of his points in the first half with 11 of CCS's 26 first-quarter points. Van Meter scored all six of his points in the opening eight minutes and also dunked.
Treveon Scott's putback gave the Chargers a 40-0 lead with 2:20 left before halftime, and he also had a two-handed slam to open the third quarter.
Whitwell's first basket came with 1:53 left in the first half as Parker Griffith connected on a 3-pointer.
CCS's Nick Eng led all scorers with 16 points (4-of-6 3s). Firing up his teammates on the bench, Eng drilled a trio of treys in the third quarter, when he scored 11 points.
"Nick really built his confidence tonight," Salter said. "He is going to be a vital part of our team when we get in foul trouble or need that outside shooter. I was happy to see him have a big night tonight."
After losing three starters from last season, the Chargers are rolling toward the new year in which they will begin play in a new region.
CCS will play the likes of Baylor, McCallie and Knoxville Catholic in the Division II-AA East Region.
The Chargers' senior class has a cumulative record of 83-17.
"Replacing John (Rhodes), Mondo (Ellison) and Amos (Davenport) is not easy, but our guys have really come together and are playing well," Salter said. "The kids are reading each other, and some of them have really grown up and matured on the court. We are a little deeper, and I hope they can keep building off this strong start into our Christmas tournament in Macon."
Contact Patrick MacCoon at pmaccoon@timesfreepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @PMacCoon.