Takeaways: 1A State Championships
For the first time in four seasons, the VHSL 1A State Champion is not named Atavist. However, that doesn’t mean the champion is in any way “new” to the scene. It was an exciting three game set, full of passionate fans,…
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Continue ReadingFor the first time in four seasons, the VHSL 1A State Champion is not named Atavist. However, that doesn’t mean the champion is in any way “new” to the scene. It was an exciting three game set, full of passionate fans, great players and some of the best coaching we had seen throughout the week. Here’s what we learned from the 1A State Championships last weekend at VCU.
Radford Bobcats: “Title Town”
With just seconds left in the 1A State Championship, the student section that travelled 3 hours to see their team started chanting: “Title town, title town.” The chant seemed appropriate, as the Radford Bobcats were on the verge of winning their 4th state title since 2009.
“We’ve just been so blessed,” head coach Rick Cormany said. “We’ve had a good run of great talent. We know that players make coaches. The best part is that it’s happening late in my career, I’m year-to-year now, I never know when my last game might be so it’s nice having this success this late.”
Radford jumped out to a big lead in the first half behind the sharpshooting of senior wing Heth Grant, who finished the first half with 13 points and four three-pointers. Things were looking up for Radford, who appeared to be heading into halftime with a sizable eight point lead. However, tragedy struck with just seven seconds left in the second quarter, as 6’7″ senior Blake Burdack went down with a foot injury, and appeared to be in tremendous pain. The Australian big man had a mediocre half from a shooting perspective, but his impact was still big with 8 points and 8 rebounds. However, toward the end of the
Burdack didn’t return in the second half, and things didn’t look too promising at one point for the Bobcats, however. The Red Devils showed a lot of fight in the third quarter, and battled back to make it a two point game as the fourth quarter got started.
However, the fourth quarter showed that not only did Radford have some great leadership in their seniors, they have a lot of promise moving forward. After being very quiet in the first three quarters, freshman point guard Quentin Morton-Robertson came to life, helping seal the game with seven points in the fourth, including five free throws.
“Coach Cormany talked me through it, yelled at me a little at halftime. After that, I just started playing better,” Morton-Robertson said.
Altavista Streak Ends at Three
All streaks must come to an end, especially ones that are impressive as Altavista’s three-peat for the 1A State Championship. It all started in 2013 when Altavista beat West Point, followed by Radford in 2014 and Honaker last season.
Coming into this season, it was clear that if Altavista were to continue their run, it wasn’t going to be easy. They lost their four top contributors, all who were First Team All State last season, including Juan Thornhill who was the Player of the Year the last two seasons.
Despite all of the change, the Colonels started clicking late in the season, and entered the state tournament as the 1A East Champions after defeating Surry County 62-59. They started on a high note, as they led Lancaster 30-21 heading into the half of the state semifinal game.
Behind the play of 5’11” senior guard Nelson Dews, who finished the semifinal game with 18 points and 5 rebounds, and sophomore big man Lawrence Gaillard, who had 12 points and 9 rebounds, the Colonels looked like they were on the way to their fourth straight state championship game. However, without the experience of the leaders they had last season, Altavista felt the pressure late, and things began to unravel.
In the end, Lancaster made more plays down the stretch, and ended Altavista’s run to a fourth straight title game 52-48. Despite the loss, the Colonels can be proud of the fact that they made their fourth straight trip to the Siegel Center, despite an entirely new starting lineup and new coaching staff.
Calvin Henderson Leads Lancaster
He came into the tournament completely unknown, and left with scouts and coaches raving about his potential. A 6’2” point guard that impacts the game in a number of ways, Henderson was the catalyst for a young Lancaster team who upset Atavist, then had Radford on the ropes early in the fourth quarter before the Bobcats started to pull away.
Henderson’s impact isn’t always seen on the stat sheet, as he did a little bit of everything for the Red Devils. He defended at both the top and the bottom of the zone, made good reads in transition and made plays on both ends of the floor. His good size and understanding of the game bolds well moving forward at the point guard position, and the best part is that he’s only a sophomore!
Remember the name, because you’ll hear more from Calvin Henderson moving forward.