Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, February 11, 1993 TAG: 9302110320
SECTION: NEIGHBORS PAGE: S-18 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: By BOB TEITLEBAUM STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
SALEM PAIR OUT TO LEAD SPARTANS TO VICTORY
Josh Pugh has his athletic college scholarship, and Mark Byington hopes to get one.More important, these two are out to lead Salem to its first Region III basketball appearance and maybe even give the Spartans their first Blue Ridge District title.
Byington, a 6-foot-3 junior guard, gave up football to concentrate on basketball. It was a daring move in a town that is in love with the gridiron sport, but Byington reasoned that his best chance for a college scholarship was through basketball.
Pugh, a 6-4 senior center, nearly gave up football a few years ago. Luckily that didn't happen. Pugh was a two-time All-Group AA offensive lineman, and that helped to get him a football scholarship to Division I-AA national champion Marshall University.
This winter, the two are the leading scorers helping Salem to an 11-3 record going into this week. Pugh is the leader inside with a 17.4 scoring average, while Byington is comfortable driving the lane or pulling up to shoot 3-pointers. Byington, averaging 22.6 points a game, has been among Timesland's top five leading scorers the entire season.
"I'm not sure how much I've improved this year," said Byington. "It's different than in the past two years because I took a three-month break [for football] and that made it difficult to catch up."
This past fall, Byington passed up football. He would have been a defensive back and next year would have had a chance to replace all-state Tra Wilson as the Spartans' quarterback.
"It was a tough decision, but I thought it would be best for me. I took a long time to make it because I like football, but basketball is my first love," said Byington.
Byington made up his mind after playing AAU basketball in the summer. "I just felt I had a better chance to get a college scholarship [in basketball]. My parents backed me up no matter what the decision would have been."
In Salem, fans and even fellow football players might have been on Byington's case for giving up football.
"There was some pressure from some of the people. A lot of people didn't think I made the right decision, that I shouldn't put all my hopes in basketball," said Byington.
There was no argument from football coach Willis White. "He was very supportive and glad that I told him face-to-face. He said he'd be rooting for me," said Byington.
While it's too early to tell where Byington will be on college recruiting lists, he's been mentioned as a possible ACC player. Wake Forest and Virginia have written letters, but Byington is aware that means nothing if they don't follow up.
"I hope to make myself a big-time player, but right now I have a long way to go," he said.
Charlie Morgan, in his first year as the Salem coach, didn't see Byington as a sophomore and can't make comparisons. "One thing that will help him is his participation in AAU, going up against tough competition like that," said Morgan.
"The other thing is his work ethic. He worked hard during the off-season and it's showing up during the season. I really feel like Mark can play Division I basketball."
As a youngster, Pugh like basketball first. "I played sandlot football, but I didn't enjoy it. I played because everyone else [in Salem] did. But I didn't play as a seventh-grader, and when I played in eighth grade I was used sparingly at tight end. Then in the ninth grade, I had a good year at center."
After that, it became a matter of whether Pugh wanted to continue as a basketball player, knowing that football was his future.
"It crossed my mind not to play [basketball] because I was struggling and didn't feel I was part of the team," said Pugh. "I talked to my dad and we decided in the long run that it would help me [improve] the quickness of my feet."
It also was a plus for the basketball team. Pugh finished as the Blue Ridge District's second-leading scorer last year and might have had a chance to be first had he been able to hit free throws.
The charity stripe hasn't been kind to Pugh. "I can't put my finger on it. Some games I'll go four-of-five or three-of-four. It's just a matter of concentrating," said Pugh, who is somewhere around 50 percent for his career.
"We've worked on Josh's free-throw shooting," said Morgan. "I think his technique is throwing him off. We work on it, but he goes back to shooting it the old way. He never shoots free throws the same way twice. He leaves his left hand on the ball too long."
Despite the free throws, Pugh is one of Timesland's toughest big men because he moves well and is able to get free. Now he says football and basketball have gone hand-in-hand for him as a high-school athlete.