Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, February 22, 1991 TAG: 9102220302
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV6 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: Ray Cox
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Imagine you are a coach of one of the local teams. You have a whistle that must have a new pea, you need a suit and tie to replace that hideous polyester ensemble you've been wearing for years, and your school needs a new team.
Man, those kids are an affront to basketball. Can't shoot, can't rebound, can't defend, and can't turn off the water in the showers.
They'd be better off beating and banging in shop class - that is, if they can miss all 10 of their thumbs with the hammer.
You're not in such great shape yourself. In fact, you look awful. That's what 1-19 does to you.
So you bury your head in your hands and stare into that cup of thin, cold coffee. And you imagine the unlimited bliss that would be yours if you had some of those studs your rivals trot out every night.
Here are the players you might want, first five and second five:
\ Perry Beverly of Pulaski County. A leaper, a slasher, a havoc causer. Beverly scored 101 field goals with an almost equal number of types of shots.
\ John Porter of Christiansburg. A left-hander who can play over the rim. Also may have the most feathery touch around.
\ Jon Maher of Blacksburg. A 6-foot-6 finesse player, but really the area's best big man. He can score (19 ppg.), rebound (10 per game) and run the floor. Won't disrupt team chemistry, either.
\ Thompson Lester of Blacksburg. People just don't know what to do with this guy. Too big and physical to be guarded by a guard, too quick to be guarded by a post player. Too much trouble inside or outside.
\ Joe Dowe of Shawsville. Takes a few more ill-advised shots than you may want your point guard to take, but he is averaging 6.1 assists and 7.5 rebounds and has one triple double this year while coming close several other times.
\ Travis Crawford of Floyd County. Can come in when you get mad at Dowe. Crawford is only 5-foot-6 or so, which may present some defensive matchup problems, but he can score (18.6 ppg.), pass and play smart.
\ Chad Phillips of Radford. A 6-1 center who has survived by being tough as beef jerky. He can also befuddle his enemies by taking the ball to the hole or wandering outside, where he shoots 35 percent. He has 39 3-pointers.
\ Dale Marshall of Floyd County. Too good an athlete to keep off the team. Big and strong, he rebounds, runs and shoots.
\ Brian Canaday of Radford. A 3-point specialist, he has 44 of them, third most in Timesland.
\ Nathan Warren of Blacksburg. Because you never have enough good ball handlers when you need them.
More all-stars: The management of the Pulaski Braves has announced a 10th anniversary team. Eight of the 21 members were in the Braves' organization; others played with the Phillies.
The honorees: catcher Jim Essian; first baseman Orlando Sanchez; second baseman Rich Casarotti; shortstop Jeff Blauser; third baseman Todd Cruz; outfielder Mike Anderson; outfielder Dave Justice; outfielder Jerry Martin; utility Don McCormack; utility John Poff; pitcher Jim Wright; pitcher Tommy Greene; pitcher Larry Christenson; pitcher Steve Avery; pitcher Mike Wallace; pitcher Kevin Coffman; pitcher Mark Clear; pitcher Steve Ziem; pitcher Ramon Romero; pitcher Kevin Saucier; pitcher Mike Stanton; manager Dallas Green; coach Smokey Burgess; coach Cloyd Boyer; coach Tom Morgan.
A baseball card set with these players is being planned as a fan giveaway sometime this season.
by CNB