A6
Sports
THE COURIER-TIMES | ROXBORO, NC
SATURDAY, FEB. 8, 2014
Bulldogs, McGhee shoot down Vikings KELLY SNOW
RCS 75, Voyager 67
COURIER-TIMES SPORTS EDITOR kellysnow@roxboro-courier.com
TIMBERLAKE — With the night that Roxboro Community School guard Darius McGhee was having, he might have been the only person in the gym that didn’t think his shots were going to fall. But he was some kind of wrong. The Roxboro Community School guard poured in 13 points in the final four minutes, including three 3-pointers all from well beyond the arc to lift the Bulldogs past Voyager Academy 75-87 in a huge North Central Athletic Conference matchup Wednesday in front of an overflowing, standing-room-only crowd at Helena Gym. McGhee finished the game with 31 points, including seven 3-pointers — three coming in a stretch of less than two minutes that helped turn a two-point deficit into a comfortable 70-61 advantage with less than two minutes to play. “I was feeling it a little bit,” McGhee said. “(on the second three) I came off the screen on the left and I was trying to get a little space. I was a little nervous when I shot it because I didn’t think it was going in. The one from the top of the key, I thought it was short.” His first three, the one that
VOYAGER ACADEMY — Gary Ford 2, McKenzie Barringer 5, Patrick Lester 9, Diante Parker 3, Christopher Sause 9, Jay Huff 23, Coltyn Faucette 15 RCS — Darius McGhee 31, DeShawn McGhee 11, Terrence Hawley 10, Mickey Drumwright 8, Christian Ingram 13 VA RCS
Score by quarters: 21 18 10 18 19 14 18 24
67 75
gave the Bulldogs the lead for good with a little more than three minutes to play, almost didn’t happen. The teams raced up and down the court several times at a frenetic tempo, turning the ball over and missing shots, until McGhee got the ball at the top of the key. The freshman dribbled for a few seconds, the defenders who was shadowing him gave him a little space and he calmly buried a three a couple of steps behind the arc. His shot gave the Bulldogs a 61-58 lead with 3:18 to play. “Before that one, I turned and looked at (assistant coaches Earl Bailey and Kirk Redman) and I See BULLDOGS, Page 8
KELLY SNOW | COURIER TIMES
Roxboro Community School guard Darius McGhee shakes loose from Voyager Academy’s Gary Ford and launches a deep 3-pointer late in Wednesday’s game. McGhee scored 13 points in the final four minutes to help lead RCS past Voyager 75-67
It was the night the freshman went OFF
T
KELLY SNOW | COURIER TIMES
RCS forward Terrence Hawley lofts a baby hook over the outstretched arm of a Voyager Academy defender.
he 300 or so people crammed into venerable Helena Gym Wednesday night can say that they were there the night that Roxboro Community School freshman guard Darius McGhee went off. Let’s back it up. You have to actually say the words out loud “Darius McGhee went off ” to show the proper respect for the kind of ridiculous performance he unleashed in the biggest game of his first high school season — and you can’t just speak in your normal tone of voice. You have to add a little emphasis, a subtle pause, and maybe even a dialect change on “off ”. For me, I turn into a Yellowhammer from Alabama with an “AWFUH” — but that’s just me. Any way you say it, the kid was simply fantastic in the Bulldogs’ huge win against Voyager Academy. McGhee finished with 31
THE BLIZZARD
KELLY SNOW points on seven 3-pointers including three bombs in the fourth quarter — each deeper than the previous one. The picture directly above this column shows the dagger. It was McGhee’s third triple in a row and it pushed the Bulldogs’ lead to 68-61 with a minute and a half to play and sent the overflowing crowd into a frenzy. Now, to fully appreciate how far away this shot was, look at right foot of Voyager’s Mackenzie Barringer (10). He’s standing on the 3-point line and there’s plenty of room between him, his teammate Gary Ford and McGhee. Friends, McGhee was only
a couple of feet away from his bench and a good 27-28 feet away from the basket — and he stroked it like was nothing. As the crowd erupted and the Bulldog players on the bench started falling over top of each other in excitement, coach Justin Bettendorf cut a little smile, shook his head and shruged his shoulders. He knew he was seeing something special. “It’s just second nature to him,” Bettendorf said. “For him, basketball is no different than talking. The bigger the atmosphere, the more he comes to play. Darius is a really nice guy outside of basketball, but on the court, he’s just got that killer
mentality.” Voyager’s next trip up the floor ended with McGhee swatting a layup attempt off the glass to start a fast break that ended with a basket by his brother Deshawn. The wall of sound inside that tiny gym was deafening as students, fans, and faculty cheered. But with all the chaos around him, all the noise and screaming and woofing, the calmest dude in the building was the Bulldogs’ freshman guard. “I just try to keep my composure and just play,” Darius McGhee said. “The crowd keeps me in the game. The crowd was hyped the whole time. We couldn’t even hear ourselves talk. All we could hear was noise.” His expression barely changed as he knocked down the first 3-pointer of the fourth quarter to give the Bulldogs the lead for good with just over three See BLIZZARD, Page 8
] PERSON HIGH SCHOOL BOYS’ BASKETBALL [
East Chapel Hill topples Rockets BY KELLY SNOW COURIER-TIMES SPORTS EDITOR kellysnow@roxboro-courier.com
KELLY SNOW | COURIER TIMES
Person guard Mike Terry tries to take the ball away from an East Chapel Hill player during Friday’s game on the road.
CHAPEL HILL — The Person High School boys’ basketball played one of its best games of the season Tuesday and defeated reigning PAC-6 champion Jordan on its own floor. The game gave the Rockets the inside track to claim an automatic bid to the 4-A state playoffs. But they couldn’t follow up that outstanding performance with another victory, falling to East Chapel Hill 62-55 on the
road. The victory was just East Chapel Hill’s second in conference play this season, and drops Person into a three-way tie with Hillside and Riverside with matching 3-5 PAC-6 records. Hillside fell to conferenceleader Northern, while Jordan slipped past Riverside in tight contest. Despite the loss, Person can still win its way into one of the conference’s three automatic bids into the playoffs. Person hosts Riverside and See ROCKETS, Page 7
ECH 62, Person 55 PERSON — Rashi Richmond 4, Mike Terry 3, Marquis Torain 22, Trevon Tapp 9, Jeff Hamlette 6, Antwon Smith 8, Jeremy Smith 3 EAST CHAPEL HILL — Kyle Chavis 5, Arkavius Parks 22, Tykeem Woodard 13, Dylan Farrow 2, Carter Collins 13, David Salem 2, Duncan Heminger 4, Robert Wilson 3 PHS ECH
Score by quarters: 13 10 11 21 55 13 14 20 15 62
SPORTS
A8 THE COURIER-TIMES | ROXBORO, NC
SATURDAY, FEB. 8, 2014
Voyager girls upend shorthanded Bulldogs BY KELLY SNOW
Roxboro Community School senior boys’ basketball player Mickey Drumwright rises up for a jumper over Voyager’s McKenzie Barringer during the second half of Wednesday’s key conference matchup. The Bulldogs won 75-67.
COURIER-TIMES SPORTS EDITOR kellysnow@roxboro-courier.com
TIMBERLAKE — The Roxboro Community School girls’ basketball team’s fell behind big early and its rally fell a little short as they fell to Voyager Academy 39-31 Wednesday at Helena Gym. The Bulldogs, playing with just six players after an injury to reserve guard Ashley Paylor, were able to take a 9-7 lead into the second quarter after forward Brianna Henderson’s putback of a Cassidy Solomon missed shot. RCS managed just one bucket until the midway point of the third quarter, and the Vikings took total advantage. Voyager outscored the Bulldogs 14-2 in the second quarter, and went on a 10-0 over the final 5:30 of the first half. The Vikings capped off the run with a transition three by Maddy Hight. Voyager stretched its lead to as big as 16 in the second half before RCS started climbing back. The Bulldogs answered with a quick 8-0 run and trimmed the lead to 31-24 heading into the fourth. The Vikings pushed their lead back out to double figures early on in the fourth and held on for the win. “The girls did the best they could for me and played as hard as they could,” RCS coach Robert Blackwell said. “I can’t be mad at them for this one. They’re tired. It’s been a long season and when you only have seven girls, and now down to six, it’s a lot to ask of them. I couldn’t be prouder.” Carlee Garrett led the Bull-
KELLY SNOW | COURIER TIMES
BULLDOGS: RCS edges Voyager, leads NCAC FROM PAGE 6 asked them if I should call timeout and calm everyone down, and he launched it,” Bettendorf said. “I started putting my head down and I looked at them and they started shaking their heads and said ‘No, I think we’re alright.’” McGhee drained two more threes less than a minute apart and blocked two layups at the rim by much bigger players that ignited fast breaks that turned into transition baskets for his brother, point guard Deshawn McGhee. The Bulldogs went on a 14-3 spurt during a three-minute stretch in the fourth quarter to stun the Vikings. The victory snapped the tie at the top of the North Central Athletic Conference between the two rivals. RCS (18-5 overall, 10-1) is alone in first place in the conference standings, a full-game in front of Voyager (15-9, 9-2) and Kestrel Heights (11-7, 9-2) heading into the final week of the regular season. The Bulldogs own the tiebreaker over Voyager after sweeping the season series, but their only loss of the conference season came at Kestrel Heights, 81-66 on Jan. 17. The teams will meet again Wednesday at Helena, with the Bulldogs likely being in a position to clinch the regular season conference championship with a win.
A loss in that game could force a three-way tie between RCS, Voyager and Kestrel. “We told the guys if we take care of business (against Voyager), the way we should, that it would be for the conference title,” Bettendorf said. “We don’t want to get into that situation where if we lose to Kestrel, it could be a coin flip, but we know we’re back in the driver’s seat.” Early on in Wednesday’s showdown it looked like Voyager would be able to take firm control of the conference. The Vikings’ overwhelming height advantage was too much for the Bulldogs in the first half. Voyager relied on 6-foot-8 stretch forward Jay Huff and 6-foot-5 Coltyn Faucette to help build a 37-27 advantage with 1:30 to play. That duo combined for 14 points in the second quarter and each blocked several shots to start fast break opportunities. The Bulldogs held on in the final few minutes without forward Terrence Hawley who was on the bench with two fouls, and actually cut the Vikings’ lead to 39-33 heading into halftime. Starters Hawley, Christian Ingram and Deshawn McGhee all picked up their second fouls early in the second quarter, but RCS managed to stay within striking distance despite juggling their lineups. “Voyager stayed in that zone and I think in a lot of ways, they made it easier on us,” Bettendorf
said. “They let us slow it down. Darius and Deshawn stayed out there and we got some good minutes from (forward) David Oakley, who will got get a ball on a miss. We didn’t necessarily have a lot of high-powered offense, but we had guys out there who would go get things done.” The Bulldogs took over in the third. RCS ratcheted up the pace and and were able to take the lead 4745 with just under two minutes to play in the third. The Bulldogs outscored Voyager 18-10 in the quarter and led 51-49 heading into the final eight minutes. “You can look back at most of our games this year, and the third quarter has been our quarter,” Bettendorf said. “For whatever reason, we just get going. I don’t know what it is, but I think now it’s a mental thing. If we can stay close until halftime, we’re going to take over in the third.” Ingram poured in 13 points for RCS, including a big 3-pointer early in the third that cut the Vikings’ lead to five. DeShawn McGhee finished with 11, while Mickey Drumwright chipped in eight. Hawley battled the Vikings’ bigger players all night and finished with 10 points and more than a dozen rebounds before fouling out in the final minute. “Terrence really battled,” Redman said. “He stepped up big time and banged around with them boys like he was 6-6, 6-7. There were a couple of times he was up so high (for rebounds), it looked like he was a 7-footer. I think maybe because he was a little stronger than them, but he definitely held his own against them.” Huff paced Voyager with 23 points, while Faucette added 15.
KELLY SNOW | COURIER TIMES
Roxboro Community School forward Brianna Henderson battles a Voyager player for a rebound during Wednesday’s game.
dogs with 10 points, while Henderson finished with seven. The Bulldogs’ two undersized interior players battled all night with Voyager post player who had significant size advantages. “Carlee and Brianna gave me everything they had and more,”
Blackwell said. “They battled those big girls and held their own.” Danielle Holt and Cassidy Solomon finished with five, while Alyssa Morris added four. Hight paced Voyager with 16 points.
BLIZZARD: Great environment for big game FROM PAGE 6 minutes to play. After a chaotic few trips up and down the floor filled with turnovers, missed shots and bodies diving all over the floor by both teams, when McGhee got his hands on the ball he slowed everything down. The freshman dribbled five or six times, steadied himself and launched a wide open 3-pointer from the volleyball midcourt line that barely moved the net after going through the basket. He was facing a double-team but got a little space at the top of the key. Why was that, you ask? He was easily 25 feet away from the rim, and there’s no way he’s going to rise up from there... right? “He got (ticked) off,” RCS assistant coach Kirk Redman said. “When they started doubleteaming him, you could see it in his facial expression that he was fixing to do something. It was a matter of when it was going to come out of him. The kid’s just a killer.” I will freely admit that I was extremely skeptical about McGhee heading into his freshman season at RCS. People whom I trust were telling me he was going to be the next great basketball player from Person County, and the talent was obvious the two times I saw him play in middle school. I was told he would be the heir apparent to Tyrone Outlaw Jr. as the best player in the county. Again...I was skeptical. Bettendorf and Redman have done a great of bringing him along slowly, letting him come off the bench for most of the first half of the season.
His teammates, a group of experienced players, have done a wonderful job of welcoming McGhee into the team and letting him be himself as a part of their program. He had several big games this season, but Wednesday’s game was very different. The Bulldogs were playing one of the two or three most talented teams they’ve seen all season, in a game they had to win if they want to claim the NCAC regular season title. Voyager is good and deep at the guard position and threw several different defenders at him with different mindsets. The Vikings bumped McGhee, they tried to prevent him from catching the ball, sometimes threw two and three defenders at him — but it simply didn’t matter. McGhee was patient, picked his spots, played both sides of the floor and was clearly the best player on the floor. The kid is the real deal — and is just getting started. A couple more thoughts The environment created at Helena Gym by the student section, cheerleaders and crowd was simply out of this world. The stands were packed before the girls’ game and stayed full throughout the boys’ contest. And they were loud, really loud, really stinkin’ loud all night. The school made a great call in bringing in extra seats in the corners of the gym and allowing people to stand along the baseline closest to the doors. Their impact on the game did not go unnoticed. “We appreciate everything that (RCS athletic director) Pete Tuck and the administration did
to make this happen and help create this atmosphere,” Bettendorf said. “There were people all around and the students, the cheerleaders, fans were awesome.” RCS-Voyager has turned into a really fantastic rivalry in all sports and is great for both young schools. It was also nice to see no problems in the stands between the fanbases. The gym at Helena certainly could not hold all of the people who wanted to attend Wednesday’s tripleheader, and it highlighted a great need for RCS to have its own on-campus gym. There was at least $1,000 worth of tickets that could not be sold because the gym simply couldn’t hold the crowd. Here’s hoping in the not-sodistant future, I’ll be covering Roxboro Community School teams in their very own dog house.