Before an important Tri-Nine Conference game against visiting unbeaten Green Hope on Friday night, Apex coach David Neal gave Evans the difficult assignment of guarding Green Hope's Chris Flemmings, the Falcons' top scorer.

Evans is also looked to as the team's leading scorer, averaging 20.1 per game this season.

But the sophomore shouldered both tasks for the Cougars, scoring 27 in the 69-58 win.

"I thought he was just incredibly energetic," said Apex coach David Neal, whose team was playing its third game of the week.

"He's shooting like 50 percent from the field and a lot of them are jumpers, he's just got a great shot. And then his athleticism -- he can get to different spots on the floor, can pull up and hang in the air, can finish in the rim. He's a very talented sophomore and I'm very lucky to have him."

Evans is one of three first-year starting guards for the Cougars, yet all three were composed in Friday's win.

After 25 turnovers in an overtime non-conference loss at Millbrook on Wednesday, Apex turned it over just six times against Green Hope (6-1, 2-1).

The Cougars (6-1, 4-0) were able to work the ball inside to forward Corey Burnette -- who had 14 points. Burnette would either go for the low-post scoring attempt or kick out to an open shooter.

Evans also had no problem creating outside shots for his teammates on several drive-and-dish plays. Apex knocked down 9-of-24 3-point attempts.

"We tried a few different things (on Evans)," said Green Hope coach John Green. "but when you have to change your entire defensive strategy to stop one player, it takes away from the help-side and team defense that you work on for so long. We tried to make some adjustments throughout the game, and took away from our team defense which opened up some shots."

While Evans, who hit 10 of his 19 attempts from the field, gashed Green Hope's defense, he also limited the effectiveness of Flemmings.

Flemmings still had 15 points, but more importantly, never got red-hot as has been the senior's forte through the years. Falcons junior John Mosser led Green Hope with 17 points.

"Without my team I wouldn't be able to do anything. My team gives me a lot of open shots and they create for me," Evans said. "Chris Flemmings is a great player and I knew that to stop him was going to be hard. I think I did a pretty good job at it tonight, but he still did get his own."

After Middle Creek's loss to Cary, Apex stands alone as the only Tri-Nine team still unbeaten in league play. The Cougars never surrendered an early 12-10 lead late in the first quarter.

"We looked a little bit out of sync tonight and I think a lot of it had to do with always being down, so we were always pressing a little too hard instead of relaxing," Green said.