James River 74 Union 68 Final/2OT
- Thread starter kwhs95fan
- Start date
Yup. Shocked they didn't foul there to prevent that with how well JR shot, esp 10 and 11.
So it looks like Radford vs James River part 4 Monday night at Roanoke College
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No repeat for state champs this year, JR earned this one the hard way.
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JR shot well early and late when it counted, in between was not the best, 17 turnovers 11-15 from the line most of which came in the 2 over times. Fouls were 10-5 in second half in Unions favor (32 attempts for Union, 15 for JR for game) and both had 10+ on clock at end of game. Union tipping the ball out on 2nd OT start allowed JR to really take control to win. Coming back from 5-6 down w about 30? Sec or less in regulation was a big morale booster and gave them some momentum going into OT
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I watched most of that game on NFHS Network.
It was an exciting game to watch for the most part - and had a very intense atmosphere.
The guard for James River - Easton - was unbelievable at times - and to me, was the key to that victory - he always would make a tough shot when the team needed it - especially the one he threw up at the end of OT.
Also, the guard for Union made some key plays as well - Jenkins - and played his heart out for this team.
It will be interesting to see how the Radford/James River winner will match up with John Marshall - they simply destroyed East Rock, and it could've been even worse.
It was an exciting game to watch for the most part - and had a very intense atmosphere.
The guard for James River - Easton - was unbelievable at times - and to me, was the key to that victory - he always would make a tough shot when the team needed it - especially the one he threw up at the end of OT.
Also, the guard for Union made some key plays as well - Jenkins - and played his heart out for this team.
It will be interesting to see how the Radford/James River winner will match up with John Marshall - they simply destroyed East Rock, and it could've been even worse.
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I had added a few comments to my original post because my computer froze when I was typing.
James River seems to thrive on the 3-ball!
(Article from game - Times News)
BIG STONE GAP — James River made shot after shot from beyond the arc to claim a 74-68 double-overtime victory over defending state champion Union in the VHSL Class 2 quarterfinals at Union on Friday.
James River (22-4) trailed by six points with under 50 seconds to play in regulation and by three with less than 15 seconds left in overtime, and on each occasion it was a long-range bucket that kept the Knights’ season alive.
“That is who we are. When we hit 3-pointers, we are tough,” said James River coach Ethan Humphries. “We knew this would be a 32 minute process and it just happened to be 40 minutes.”
Union (22-6) took a 52-46 lead with 49 seconds left in regulation after Bradley Bunch sank a pair of foul shots. Moments later Corey Easton drained a 3-pointer and after a Bears turnover, the Knights tied the game on Jayson Easton’s trey.
The Bears got a shot at the end of regulation, but Bunch’s jumper didn’t find its target and the teams went to another four-minute stanza.
In overtime, Union again led by three, this time with 15 seconds left when Caiden Bartee made two free throws.
Again, the Knights were unfazed. With time running down, Corey Easton tossed a desperation 3 toward the rim over the outstretched arm of Malachi Jenkins. The shot found the bottom of the net, forcing a second extra period.
“We do special situations every day in practice and we always guard the 3-point line,” Bears coach Zack Moore said of possibly fouling up by three. “I wanted to do something we do in practice every day; we forced them into a tough 3 and it bit us.”
James River scored first in the second overtime and never trailed, but Union put forth one final push. Two foul shots by Jenkins tied the game with 3:01 to go before the senior canned an elbow jumper to cut the lead to 68-66 with 1:27 to play.
After a Bears turnover, the Knights forced the hosts to foul them and the visitors were solid from the stripe. James River connected on 9 of 11 free throws in the overtime periods to seal the deal.
James River built an early lead behind the shooting of Ryan Steger. Steger connected on a quartet of 3-pointers in the opening eight minutes to stake the Knights to a 21-8 advantage.
Steger’s fast start was part of a big day from distance for the Knights, who connected on 13 shots from beyond the arc.
“They got off to a great start, seems like they were making everything,” Moore said. “We were able to get it back to two possessions by halftime.”
Union got back in the game with its defense. Moore’s club held James River to 3-of-14 shooting in the second quarter and an 0-of-5 showing from the arc in the second quarter.
Still, the Knights held the lead until 2:59 to play in regulation when a Jenkins free throw put the Bears in front 45-44.
In what was his final high school game, Jenkins finished with 17 points, seven rebounds and two steals.
And he did it essentially on one foot.
“Gutty performance. He got hurt Tuesday. I really did not know if he could even play,” Moore said. “He’s a tough kid. He got hurt and was dying to go back in.”
Fellow senior Bunch netted a team-high 20 and led all players with 14 rebounds. Two other seniors, Noah Jordan (14 points) and Bartee (11), also scored in double figures for Union.
Corey Easton paced the Knights with 24 points and Steger finished with 22. Jayson Easton (12) and Patrick Clevenger (10) also had double figures for James River, which shot 11-for-15 from the free-throw line compared to a 20-of-32 showing for Union.
James River will play Radford on Monday with a trip to the state championship on the line.
BIG STONE GAP — James River made shot after shot from beyond the arc to claim a 74-68 double-overtime victory over defending state champion Union in the VHSL Class 2 quarterfinals at Union on Friday.
James River (22-4) trailed by six points with under 50 seconds to play in regulation and by three with less than 15 seconds left in overtime, and on each occasion it was a long-range bucket that kept the Knights’ season alive.
“That is who we are. When we hit 3-pointers, we are tough,” said James River coach Ethan Humphries. “We knew this would be a 32 minute process and it just happened to be 40 minutes.”
Union (22-6) took a 52-46 lead with 49 seconds left in regulation after Bradley Bunch sank a pair of foul shots. Moments later Corey Easton drained a 3-pointer and after a Bears turnover, the Knights tied the game on Jayson Easton’s trey.
The Bears got a shot at the end of regulation, but Bunch’s jumper didn’t find its target and the teams went to another four-minute stanza.
In overtime, Union again led by three, this time with 15 seconds left when Caiden Bartee made two free throws.
Again, the Knights were unfazed. With time running down, Corey Easton tossed a desperation 3 toward the rim over the outstretched arm of Malachi Jenkins. The shot found the bottom of the net, forcing a second extra period.
“We do special situations every day in practice and we always guard the 3-point line,” Bears coach Zack Moore said of possibly fouling up by three. “I wanted to do something we do in practice every day; we forced them into a tough 3 and it bit us.”
James River scored first in the second overtime and never trailed, but Union put forth one final push. Two foul shots by Jenkins tied the game with 3:01 to go before the senior canned an elbow jumper to cut the lead to 68-66 with 1:27 to play.
After a Bears turnover, the Knights forced the hosts to foul them and the visitors were solid from the stripe. James River connected on 9 of 11 free throws in the overtime periods to seal the deal.
James River built an early lead behind the shooting of Ryan Steger. Steger connected on a quartet of 3-pointers in the opening eight minutes to stake the Knights to a 21-8 advantage.
Steger’s fast start was part of a big day from distance for the Knights, who connected on 13 shots from beyond the arc.
“They got off to a great start, seems like they were making everything,” Moore said. “We were able to get it back to two possessions by halftime.”
Union got back in the game with its defense. Moore’s club held James River to 3-of-14 shooting in the second quarter and an 0-of-5 showing from the arc in the second quarter.
Still, the Knights held the lead until 2:59 to play in regulation when a Jenkins free throw put the Bears in front 45-44.
In what was his final high school game, Jenkins finished with 17 points, seven rebounds and two steals.
And he did it essentially on one foot.
“Gutty performance. He got hurt Tuesday. I really did not know if he could even play,” Moore said. “He’s a tough kid. He got hurt and was dying to go back in.”
Fellow senior Bunch netted a team-high 20 and led all players with 14 rebounds. Two other seniors, Noah Jordan (14 points) and Bartee (11), also scored in double figures for Union.
Corey Easton paced the Knights with 24 points and Steger finished with 22. Jayson Easton (12) and Patrick Clevenger (10) also had double figures for James River, which shot 11-for-15 from the free-throw line compared to a 20-of-32 showing for Union.
James River will play Radford on Monday with a trip to the state championship on the line.
They got 3-4 shooters in the starting five and if there’s a couple of them on any given night it opens up a lot of space. They can also get to the rim pretty well to so there hard to defend when there clicking as a unit. Most of the time they don’t hesitate to make an extra pass for a better shot for a teammate either.
Hey anything can happen in Richmond. Remember when Martinsville ( David ) slayed R.E. Lee of Staunton ( Goliath ) back in 2006. I think the R. E. Lee hadn't lost a game in about 2 and a half years. They were on like an 85 something game winning streak. So, anything is possible.
JR plays very, very good defense. That shouldn't be overlooked. Nothing easy for Union all night.
General public access to tickets at 9:00 am Monday, on Gofan I think there’s slightly over 1500 tickets available
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