Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, February 23, 1991 TAG: 9102230285
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B1 EDITION: BEDFORD/FRANKLIN
SOURCE: M.J. DOUGHERTY SPECIAL TO THE ROANOKE TIMES & WORLD-NEWS
DATELINE: CHRISTIANSBURG LENGTH: Medium
Christiansburg's 6-foot-4 junior center preserved the Blue Demons' 70-69 boys' basketball victory against Radford with a block and rebound of a layup attempt by Rick Gravley with three seconds left.
The win allowed Christiansburg (11-9 overall, 2-4 district) to finish third in the New River District race. Radford (8-13, 1-5) which entered the game tied with the Blue Demons, fell into last place in the four-team district.
"All of a sudden, I turned around and he was wide open," said Gregory, who finished with 16 rebounds. "The only chance I had was to get to him - and I got the block, and I didn't get a foul."
Gregory was fouled after getting the rebound. With two seconds to go, he missed the front end of a one-and-one, but the Bobcats could not get a shot off before the buzzer.
Radford was in position to win the game at the buzzer because it rallied from an 11-point deficit in the fourth quarter. The Bobcats forced six turnovers in the first 2 1/4 minutes of the fourth quarter and pulled to 60-56.
"They got their zone press going and it caused some problems for us," Christiansburg coach Gerald Thompson said. "We didn't handle it well the first few times. I don't how many possessions, but there were four or five times we didn't get past the top of the key [before turning it over]."
Said Radford coach Buddy Martin: "It did get us back. I'd like to think we played well. They probably panicked a little bit, which helped us. And we were in such a hole, we didn't have any choice [but to pressure]."
The Bobcats then allowed Christiansburg only five points in the final four minutes. John Porter had four of those points for the Demons.
"I guess I wasn't as tired as everyone else," said Porter, who scored a team-high 15 points. "I didn't play much in the third quarter [because of foul trouble]. I just kept posting up and getting the ball."
Porter's points prevented Christiansburg from falling behind as Brian Canaday started to heat things up. Canaday made a pair of 3-pointers in the final 2:21. The second one knotted the score at 69 with 1:09 to play.
Shon McMillian put Christiansburg ahead to stay, 70-69, when he made the front end of a one-and-one with 38 seconds left. He missed the second free throw. But Radford could not take advantage as Willie Delaney's shot bounced off the rim and out of bounds with 17 seconds to go.
The Bobcats got new life when Christiansburg's Eddie Bentley missed the front end of a one-and-one with 12 seconds to go. Chad Phillips got the rebound for the Bobcats, who pushed the ball up court quickly. But Gregory swatted the opportunity away when he blocked Gravley's shot.
Canaday led Radford with a game-high 28 points. Phillips added 24 points and 12 rebounds for the Bobcats.
RADFORD (69)
Lineburg 1 1-2 3, Delaney 2 2-2 7, Harris 0 0-0 0, Canaday 10 3-4 28, Krupey 1 0-0 2, Gravley 1 0-0 2, Phillips 6 12-19 24, Pierson 1 0-0 3, Saunders 0 0-0 0. Totals 22 18-27 69. CHRISTIANSBURG (70)
Porter 7 1-1 15, Bentley 6 0-2 14, Gregory 3 1-4 7, Lucas 4 0-1 9, McMillian 1 3-4 6, Gillenwater 2 0-0 6, Sabo 1 0-0 2, Smith 5 1-3 11. Totals 29 6-15 70. Radford 2081823-69 Christiansburg 20132413-70 Three-point goals: Delaney, Canaday 5, Pierson, Bentley 2, Lucas, McMillian, Gillenwater 2. Fouled out: none. Team fouls: Radford 15, Christiansburg 16. JV: 47-42, Radford.
by CNB