Big boys basketball game in the Bay Rivers District last week. Working on a couple of articles on for-profit schools for next week.
By Jim McGrath Thursday, January 13, 2011
When York and Tabb square off in sports, the rules are like that with any other great athletic rivalry. Throw away the records and let them have it at.The Falcons entered the sports complex of the “Big Orange” in a precarious position within the Bay Rivers District. Several recent losses had left the team mired in eighth place, battling a 3-5 district mark.
On the other hand, Tabb was soaring among the elite AA teams in Virginia, opening the season with a 10-1 record. Even a pair of close losses to Bishop Sullivan and Walsingham had barely affected the Tigers' ranking, with the team maintaining a third place statewide status in the most recent VirginiaPreps.com Division 4 poll.
But within the first few minutes of last night’s matchup on Big Bethel, it was obvious that Tabb was ready to bring a heaping load of intensity and York was ready to match it.
With the Falcons down 5-2 early, York’s sophomore sensation Brandon Harvell stole an errant pass and rushed down the court en route to what would have been an easy layup. Except he was fouled by Tabb’s Patrick Corbett. Hard. As the vocal York crowd roared its disapproval, the equally vocal Tabb crowd cheered a strong and decisive defensive play from Corbett. In the meantime, Harvell calmly sank both free throw attempts and the teams resumed business.
In the end, intensity was the word of the day. Both teams missed many open jumpers, but followed after the potential rebounds with abandon and vigor with four, sometimes five, players jumping simultaneously after the bouncing ball.
Throughout the game, the lead changed hands. Twice before the end of the first quarter. Five more times before the end of the half. As the teams went into the locker room, underdog York was clinging to a 26-25 lead.
Then it got interesting.
Two free throws early in the third quarter by Chase Gibson bumped the cushion to 32-28, but neither team would lead by more than six for the rest of the game. Each thrust by one team resulted in a parry from the other. As Tabb’s Quinlin McCormick drove to his left for a layup with 15 seconds remaining in the quarter, the margin had been cut back to one, 36-35.
Harvell opened the fourth with a steal and layup, hoping to set the tone for his team. However, Tabb clawed back, making one of two free throws on successive possessions to make the score 38-37. After a York miss, 6’3” senior Cy Cole buried a three-point jumper from the left corner, giving Tabb a 40-38 lead. Another Cole bank shot upped the lead to 42-39. With 3:24 remaining in the game, Will Baggett drained two free throws after a Harvell foul to make the score 46-41, Tabb. After Quinton Martinez made one of two from the charity stripe, junior Joseph Nelson responded with a basket and with 2:36 to go, the Tigers had opened a 48-42 spread.
But the Falcons fought back. Branson Tew buried a three-pointer from the left corner, halving the deficit. Tabb looked to take their time to set up a good shot, but Shaq Rodney was fouled and made one of two. 49-45. A Martinez drive and basket cut the lead to two. Then, Tew stole a pass and drove for a layup to tie the game at 49. Each team exchanged a pair of baskets and the game headed into overtime, tied at 53.
The teams exchanged the lead a couple of times in the first three minutes of overtime, but the outcome was almost decided with 44.7 seconds remaining. Clinging to a 56-54 advantage, Falcon guard Taylor Kinney was fouled by Joseph Nelson, his fifth.
Despite the vocal pressure from the boisterous crowd, Kinney swished both free throws and the four point lead looked to hold.
Tabb’s Baggett disagreed with that assessment and responded with a three-point basket to make the score 58-57 with thirty ticks left on the clock.
York hoped to hold the ball for one last possession, but Rodney fouled Martinez with 17.4 seconds left. The junior made the first shot, but his second attempt bounced off the front of the rim, giving the Tigers one last chance.
Tabb passed around the perimeter, looking for one good shot as time ran out. With six seconds left, Baggett gave his best effort from the top of the key, but fell short and a timeout was called with York in possession.
Immediately off the inbound pass, Rodney fouled Martinez again. But this time, Martinez made the first shot and watched the second roll in from the front of the rim to give the Falcons a four point lead. Tabb scored at the buzzer, but it wasn't enough to grab the win.
When asked about the importance of the win, Falcon coach Jeff Slade noted the importance of the local rivalry and added, “anytime you win against a (Tabb coach) Doug Baggett team, it’s huge.” Reflecting on his team’s possible resurgence, Slade added, “we have five losses within the district. Even though we’re in eighth place, there are some teams with four losses that we're looking up at.”
With the win, York improves to 6-6 (4-5 in the BRD), while Tabb has now lost three straight and drops to 10-4 (8-2 in the BRD). Martinez led the Falcons with 16 points, while Cole paced the Tigers effort with 15.
York (6-6, 4-5 BRD) 16 10 10 17 8 - 61
Tabb (10-4, 8-2 BRD) 14 11 10 18 6 - 59
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