Any time these two meet on the basketball court, it is a foregone conclusion that it will be a bodies-on-the-floor dogfight and that was certainly the case tonight in the Hornet Hive as the home team got a battle out of Riverheads for about a quarter and a half before their superior size and depth took over and led them to a 73-53 victory. That win sets up a huge battle Friday night, also at Wilson, for first place in the district when Staunton comes calling. The Storm rolled to an easy win at Stuarts Draft tonight, so each will come into Friday's game on a big momentum swing.
Speaking of momentum, Riverheads enjoyed it early tonight as Wilson had trouble finding the range. As a result the Gladiators got six early points from J P Crawford to grab a 10-3 lead midway through the first quarter. The Hornets soon warmed up and closed the RHS advantage to 12-9 by the end of the quarter. Wilson's huge height advantage (they start 6'9" and 6'5" whereas Riverheads doesn't even have anyone taller than 6'2") was not a factor in the opening quarter as all six Gladiator baskets were scored from in close.
In fact, one of the factors in tonight's game was Wilson denying Riverheads its usual three-point game. The Gladiators have hit at or close to double figures from behind the arc several times this season but tonight they managed only one and it came from freshman Jaxon Duff midway through the third quarter.
Wilson was able in fact to frustrate and almost completely shut down both Will Gardner and Henley Dunlap as those two combined for only five points tonight. Crawford ended up scoring 15 hard-earned points as he was all over the floor. Duff added 14 after being pressed into action more than usual when Dunlap picked up his fourth foul very early in the second half. Tonight's game was a career high for the freshman who has a bright future with the Gladiators.
In that early success the Gladiators enjoyed, the hustle of Grayson Ward was noticeable as the 6'1" junior, who probably doesn't weigh 160, was doing a great job fighting off the much taller Hornets. He is generally not counted on for much scoring but he did manage six points tonight, including the first bucket of the game, and the always steady Jackson Brammer added seven.
But once Wilson got into the flow of its offense, they were able to grab the lead and steadily pull away. I don't keep score for opposing teams but Chase Snyder and Mason McWhorter seemed to do most of the damage. Sorry if I am not properly crediting any of the other Hornets, but just about anyone they put on the floor contributed.
As usual those nice young men in the striped shirts were a major part of the festivities. This was one of those games in which the things they DIDN'T call seemed to be more obvious than the things they did. Touch fouls or questionable ones were whistled but mayhem was allowed. Also there seemed to be an unusually large number of missed out of bound calls or stepping out of bounds.
The JV game was an absolute massacre as Wilson pressed relentlessly the entire game and held the Gladiators to just two foul shots in the second quarter and zero points in a running-clock fourth quarter on the way to a resounding 68-22 win. The Hornet JVs also have some serious size and in fact one wide-body eighth-grader looks like he could be Charles Barkley size before all is said and done.
Tonight's game was the regularly-scheduled game between the two teams. Their snow make-up date is Wednesday of next week in Greenville. But for now, the Hornets are understandably focused on their visit from Staunton and the Gladiators will hope to bounce back, also on Friday, when they entertain Waynesboro.
Speaking of momentum, Riverheads enjoyed it early tonight as Wilson had trouble finding the range. As a result the Gladiators got six early points from J P Crawford to grab a 10-3 lead midway through the first quarter. The Hornets soon warmed up and closed the RHS advantage to 12-9 by the end of the quarter. Wilson's huge height advantage (they start 6'9" and 6'5" whereas Riverheads doesn't even have anyone taller than 6'2") was not a factor in the opening quarter as all six Gladiator baskets were scored from in close.
In fact, one of the factors in tonight's game was Wilson denying Riverheads its usual three-point game. The Gladiators have hit at or close to double figures from behind the arc several times this season but tonight they managed only one and it came from freshman Jaxon Duff midway through the third quarter.
Wilson was able in fact to frustrate and almost completely shut down both Will Gardner and Henley Dunlap as those two combined for only five points tonight. Crawford ended up scoring 15 hard-earned points as he was all over the floor. Duff added 14 after being pressed into action more than usual when Dunlap picked up his fourth foul very early in the second half. Tonight's game was a career high for the freshman who has a bright future with the Gladiators.
In that early success the Gladiators enjoyed, the hustle of Grayson Ward was noticeable as the 6'1" junior, who probably doesn't weigh 160, was doing a great job fighting off the much taller Hornets. He is generally not counted on for much scoring but he did manage six points tonight, including the first bucket of the game, and the always steady Jackson Brammer added seven.
But once Wilson got into the flow of its offense, they were able to grab the lead and steadily pull away. I don't keep score for opposing teams but Chase Snyder and Mason McWhorter seemed to do most of the damage. Sorry if I am not properly crediting any of the other Hornets, but just about anyone they put on the floor contributed.
As usual those nice young men in the striped shirts were a major part of the festivities. This was one of those games in which the things they DIDN'T call seemed to be more obvious than the things they did. Touch fouls or questionable ones were whistled but mayhem was allowed. Also there seemed to be an unusually large number of missed out of bound calls or stepping out of bounds.
The JV game was an absolute massacre as Wilson pressed relentlessly the entire game and held the Gladiators to just two foul shots in the second quarter and zero points in a running-clock fourth quarter on the way to a resounding 68-22 win. The Hornet JVs also have some serious size and in fact one wide-body eighth-grader looks like he could be Charles Barkley size before all is said and done.
Tonight's game was the regularly-scheduled game between the two teams. Their snow make-up date is Wednesday of next week in Greenville. But for now, the Hornets are understandably focused on their visit from Staunton and the Gladiators will hope to bounce back, also on Friday, when they entertain Waynesboro.
