Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, January 1, 1994 TAG: 9401010141
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: By BOB TEITLEBAUM STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
"At least three times," shouted Vikings' coach Billy Pope after Salem had finished off Cave Spring 66-58 Friday to advance to the championship game of the Advance Auto Parts Holiday Classic against Northside today at 3 p.m. on the Spartans' floor.
The two Blue Ridge District rivals might be starting a series that rivals some of those between William Fleming and Patrick Henry when they used to play four or five times a season in the 1980s.
The Spartans (4-0) and Vikings are off to the fastest starts in the Blue Ridge District and are the teams to beat for the title going into January.
Salem will be tested when it plays for the third straight day. Spartan coach Charlie Morgan is concerned because last year his team wasn't that strong when it had to play on consecutive nights.
Friday, Salem tired against Cave Spring as the Spartans had to play an afternoon game after running up and down the court late Thursday night to beat Laurel Park in the first round.
"That took a toll on us. Something I mentioned to our players is that today we needed a seventh, eighth and ninth man off the bench," said Morgan.
So the second-year Salem coach subbed liberally except for Mark Byington, the early season premier player in Timesland who had 32 points for the second consecutive game.
Byington was still shooting at the end of the game. He hit 10-of-19 from the floor and was 6-of-10 from 3-point range. However, three of his missed 3-point attempts came in the second half. In the final period, Byington managed only 2-of-6 shooting as fatigue set in.
"Last year it was tough to play back-to-back games," said Morgan. "I think our depth had something to do with it. It might not be a factor [today] when we're home."
Byington's main support came from 6-foot-4 Nathan Routt, who scored 16 points. Routtalso grabbed seven rebounds.
"He's really rough on us inside," said Cave Spring coach Rick Crotts, whose Knights are a perimeter team without a dominant big man.
The Knights' shooting also suffered as they played for the second straight day. However, they had about six more hours to rest than Salem after playing in the tournament's opening game Friday.
Still, Cave Spring (3-5) made only 8-of-26 3-point attempts with James Irvin and Dusty Beekman each getting three. Matt Matheny scored 20 points, four below his average, and failed to hit a 3-point shot. In beating Fieldale-Collinsville 75-42, the Knights hit 7-of-9 3-point attempts.
"They had more pressure on us than we usually face. But if we had hit a couple of more, who knows. We keep getting closer and closer," said Crotts, whose Knights lost by nine points at home to Salem before Christmas.
Salem hit 21-of-44 from the field. The Spartans led almost the entire way, but Cave Spring, who connected on only 22-of-60 shots, always challenged. The closest the Knights came was at 54-51 in the final period. Then Byington zipped in a 3-point shot to send the Spartans to the title game.
by CNB