Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, January 18, 1992 TAG: 9201180345
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: PHYLLIS A. FAIR SPORTSWRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
BYRD TOPS ALLEGHANY
Expect the worst and hope for the best.Alleghany expected William Byrd to play a half-court game Friday night, but the Mountaineers didn't expect it to be too much for them to handle.
The Terriers (6-3, 1-0) defeated Alleghany 73-59 in the Blue Ridge District boys' basketball opener for both teams.
"We got into their type of game - half court, and that's not our type of game," said Mountaineers coach Jimmy Smith.
The lead changed four times in the first quarter, but William Byrd took it for good on Donald Childress' pull-up jumper with 1:19 to go to make it 14-13.
The Mountaineers' offense was slowed when Michael Hunter injured an ankle. Hunter had to sit out the rest of the first half and most of the second. He had scored in double figures in eight of the past 10 games.
"That hurt us," Smith said. "We had to make some adjustments. We had to play kids who don't normally have much playing time."
Early in the third quarter the Mountaineers (7-4 overall 0-1 district) outscored William Byrd 9-5 and cut into the Terriers' 10-point when Todd Wheatley made two free throws to make it 41-34, but William Byrd scored six points to put the Terriers back up by 10.
Offensive rebounding gave William Byrd a big advantage.
"They weren't shooting any better than us, but they were getting their second shots," Smith said.
The Terriers got their biggest lead of the game at 64-49 when Matt Reynolds made a jump shot with 2:20 to go. They matched that lead a minute later on David Robertson's layup.
Alleghany cut into William Byrd's lead by making two 3-pointers in the game's final minute, but it was too late.
"It was a total team effort," said William Byrd coach Paul Barnard. "The guys came off the bench and took things away from them."
The Terriers were led in scoring by Childress, who matched his season-high with 22 points.
"Donald played real well, and that's going to help us and make a difference in our team," Barnard said. \
see microfilm for box score