Fort Defiance and Riverheads tangled for the second time this season and for all practical purposes, tonight's game followed the same script as the first one. Once again it was a low-scoring, defensive-minded game with each team plagued by poor shooting and turnovers. Once again the Indians took a one-point lead into halftime, and once again Riverheads came out strong in the third quarter and held the lead going into the fourth. But once again the Indians were able to string together enough baskets to win the game, this time 39-35 after taking the first one 48-39 on their home court.
If you have followed this sometimes frustrating season for the Big Red, this was their fifth district loss against just one win, but yet they held a fourth-quarter lead in four of those losses, and even in the other one (the Wilson game) they roared from behind with a 30-point fourth quarter and came within five points of catching up. So they just need to figure out how to "finish" as they say on TV, and fortunately there is enough time left in the season for them to pick up some wins and possibly make the regional field. By far the best news about their situation at this exact point in time is that they do not have another game until next Tuesday when they travel to Staunton, a team they have already beaten. You can bet they will be using that time to re-evaluate how they can still make the most of this season.
In some ways, tonight's loss may have been the most frustrating of that string because there was a brief period in which RHS was not only ahead, but they appeared to have the Indians completely on the ropes. Junior sharpshooter Bennett Dunlap had closed out the first half with a triple that cut the lead to 18-17 and clearly gave RHS some momentum. He then came out of the locker room and fired in three more treys within about the first five minutes of the quarter. The Gladiators took their largest lead at 28-21 and at that point appeared ready to break the game open and even the season series.
But almost as if someone pulled a switch, the Gladiators went stone cold from the floor. They only managed one bucket the rest of the way and a few foul shots. And it was certainly not for lack of opportunity as they were getting the ball inside effectively enough to do some damage, but the shots were repeatedly short-armed or rimmed out just when it looked like they were about to go in.
As you can tell from the score, the Indians were not exactly lighting up the scoreboard either. They did close the gap to 28-24 by the end of the third and with the score tied at 29-29 early in the fourth Tyreek Veney, who had an off-night by his standards, drained a triple to put the visitors ahead 32-29.
Riverheads managed a final tie at 35-35, which set the stage for the two most crucial possessions of the game. With the Indians in a delay game, the Gladiator defense broke down and allowed a wide open lay-up to make it 37-35. Then with a chance to tie, a pass into the lane was deflected and bounced off the intended recipient's knee. That forced the Big Red to foul and the Indians' Kaden Jones calmly sank the last two points of the night.
The Fort did foul Riverheads with about four seconds left and put the Gladiators on the line with the double bonus, which mathematically gave the Big Red at least a chance to pull out a miracle, but the shooter missed the first one and bricked the second intentionally and the game ended quietly.
Dunlap's four triples led the Riverheads scoring with 12, and floor general Ryan Farris was right behind him with 11 before fouling out midway through the fourth, which certainly did not help the Gladiator cause. As for the Indians, I don't keep opponent scoring totals, but in the absence of Veney's normal production, it appeared to me that sophomore Samuel Garber saved the day for the Fort.
So tonight's game leaves both teams at sort of a crossroads. I am not sure what FD's playoff picture looks like but they have to be pleased with this win, especially considering that they had nearly taken down Buffalo Gap on Saturday. But for Riverheads, the picture is much clearer. This can be the game that makes them mad enough to turn their season around or it can be the one that sends them deeper into trouble. Being the optimist I am, I choose to believe the former and I see at least a handful of winnable games left on the schedule.
Once again the Gladiator JVs picked up a victory tonight, avenging an earlier loss when the Fort beat them by one point at the buzzer. But this one was all Riverheads from the beginning and they won easily 60-46. During this stretch of four-games-in-five days, the Junior GMen were an impressive 3-1, losing only to Staunton's highly-entertaining squad.
So that is it from this corner for a week or so. Let's see what the Big Red has in store for us next Tuesday when they travel into Staunton to try and sweep a series of their own.
If you have followed this sometimes frustrating season for the Big Red, this was their fifth district loss against just one win, but yet they held a fourth-quarter lead in four of those losses, and even in the other one (the Wilson game) they roared from behind with a 30-point fourth quarter and came within five points of catching up. So they just need to figure out how to "finish" as they say on TV, and fortunately there is enough time left in the season for them to pick up some wins and possibly make the regional field. By far the best news about their situation at this exact point in time is that they do not have another game until next Tuesday when they travel to Staunton, a team they have already beaten. You can bet they will be using that time to re-evaluate how they can still make the most of this season.
In some ways, tonight's loss may have been the most frustrating of that string because there was a brief period in which RHS was not only ahead, but they appeared to have the Indians completely on the ropes. Junior sharpshooter Bennett Dunlap had closed out the first half with a triple that cut the lead to 18-17 and clearly gave RHS some momentum. He then came out of the locker room and fired in three more treys within about the first five minutes of the quarter. The Gladiators took their largest lead at 28-21 and at that point appeared ready to break the game open and even the season series.
But almost as if someone pulled a switch, the Gladiators went stone cold from the floor. They only managed one bucket the rest of the way and a few foul shots. And it was certainly not for lack of opportunity as they were getting the ball inside effectively enough to do some damage, but the shots were repeatedly short-armed or rimmed out just when it looked like they were about to go in.
As you can tell from the score, the Indians were not exactly lighting up the scoreboard either. They did close the gap to 28-24 by the end of the third and with the score tied at 29-29 early in the fourth Tyreek Veney, who had an off-night by his standards, drained a triple to put the visitors ahead 32-29.
Riverheads managed a final tie at 35-35, which set the stage for the two most crucial possessions of the game. With the Indians in a delay game, the Gladiator defense broke down and allowed a wide open lay-up to make it 37-35. Then with a chance to tie, a pass into the lane was deflected and bounced off the intended recipient's knee. That forced the Big Red to foul and the Indians' Kaden Jones calmly sank the last two points of the night.
The Fort did foul Riverheads with about four seconds left and put the Gladiators on the line with the double bonus, which mathematically gave the Big Red at least a chance to pull out a miracle, but the shooter missed the first one and bricked the second intentionally and the game ended quietly.
Dunlap's four triples led the Riverheads scoring with 12, and floor general Ryan Farris was right behind him with 11 before fouling out midway through the fourth, which certainly did not help the Gladiator cause. As for the Indians, I don't keep opponent scoring totals, but in the absence of Veney's normal production, it appeared to me that sophomore Samuel Garber saved the day for the Fort.
So tonight's game leaves both teams at sort of a crossroads. I am not sure what FD's playoff picture looks like but they have to be pleased with this win, especially considering that they had nearly taken down Buffalo Gap on Saturday. But for Riverheads, the picture is much clearer. This can be the game that makes them mad enough to turn their season around or it can be the one that sends them deeper into trouble. Being the optimist I am, I choose to believe the former and I see at least a handful of winnable games left on the schedule.
Once again the Gladiator JVs picked up a victory tonight, avenging an earlier loss when the Fort beat them by one point at the buzzer. But this one was all Riverheads from the beginning and they won easily 60-46. During this stretch of four-games-in-five days, the Junior GMen were an impressive 3-1, losing only to Staunton's highly-entertaining squad.
So that is it from this corner for a week or so. Let's see what the Big Red has in store for us next Tuesday when they travel into Staunton to try and sweep a series of their own.
