ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, February 15, 1997 TAG: 9702180030
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: CHRIS LANG STAFF WRITER
Cave Spring needed an upset victory Friday night at William Fleming to play its way out of the Roanoke Valley District play-in game.
But the Knights forgot to pack their offense for the trip to the Colonels' gym.
Fleming used a smothering pressure defense and an 11-0 run midway through the second half to secure a 48-38 boys' basketball victory and tie Patrick Henry for the RVD regular-season title.
Fleming and Patrick Henry are tentatively scheduled to meet at 7 p.m. Monday at Franklin County High School in a playoff game that will determine the district's regular-season championship and the automatic berth in the Northwestern Region tournament that goes with it.
Cave Spring tied Pulaski County for third place in the district, but lost a coin flip to determine their finish in the standings. The Knights will play host to Franklin County on Tuesday in the district play-in game, with the winner to face the winner of the Patrick Henry-Fleming playoff game.
Cave Spring (12-9 overall, 3-5 district) took its only lead of the game, 28-26. with 4:30 left in the third quarter. That was just after Knights big man Alex Phillips, who finished with a game-high 20 points, picked up his third personal foul. Hicks sat Phillips, and the Knights would not score again until 4:49 remained in the game, a span of 7:41.
``It's just one of those things,'' Hicks said. ``Each of our last three games has been close, and in each of those games we've hit a stagnant point. Their defensive pressure had something to do with it. It took a toll on our legs.''
The Colonels (14-5, 7-1) responded when challenged. A shot by senior forward Jaron Walker found the bottom of the net and Fleming regained the lead 30-28. Two big buckets by senior guard Richard Wilson at the end of the third quarter put Fleming up 34-28.
Cave Spring had something to do with its own offensive struggles. The Knights set up a picture-perfect backdoor play, only to see the layup missed by guard Ricky Dierker. Cave Spring missed seven shots and turned over the ball seven times before it scored again on a Corey Paxton 3-pointer with 4:49 left in the game.
Coach Roland ``Lovelace just told us to have more intensity in our defensive game, stop the penetration and step off on Alex [Phillips] down low,'' Wilson said.
The Colonels couldn't stop the Knights' 6-foot-6 Phillips, but nobody else picked up the slack for Cave Spring. The last of Phillips' 20 points came with 21 seconds left in game on a one-handed dunk.
``I felt like we had a lack of a perimeter game tonight,'' Hicks said. ``We were tired. Alex carried us as far as he could, but somebody from the perimeter had to step up.''
Cave Spring never could find the touch from the perimeter. The Knights' three starting guards - Spence Baird, Dierker and Paxton - combined for 12 points and one 3-pointer. This from a team that hit six 3-pointers in one quarter in a loss this season at Pulaski County.
``Basically, we just played defense,'' Lovelace said. ``We helped recover some. We just picked up our defensive intensity a bit.''
Fleming senior Brad Dunleavy led the Colonels' charge on Senior Night with 11 points, including a 3-pointer with 7:18 left in the game that put Fleming ahead 37-28.
The seniors and the rest of the Colonels' squad can focus on their next task, the date with Patrick Henry on Monday. The schools split their regular-season meetings and the playoff will determine which team can relax a bit during the district tournament knowing it already has a regional berth in hand.
``It's a big one,'' Wilson said. ``It's one-to-one right now. We need this one. Whoever wins is the best team in the district. We have to be ready to come out intense and play Fleming basketball like we know how.''
NOTE: Please see microfilm for scores.
LENGTH: Medium: 75 lines KEYWORDS: BASKETBALLby CNB