Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, September 21, 1993 TAG: 9309210163
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BRIAN DeVIDO STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Bassett went into the locker room confused Monday night. The Bengals, the top-ranked girls' high school basketball team in Timesland, were trailing unranked William Byrd by four points, a team they blew out by 29 points last week.
Bassett's offense was struggling. The Bengals turned over the ball 13 times in the half and were outhustled by host Byrd.
But that was just one half. Bassett took over in the second half by using its pressure defense to help force 32 Byrd turnovers, 12 in the third quarter, and the Bengals took a tough 59-51 non-district victory.
"We made some adjustments at halftime," Bengals head coach Lisa Black said. "We were being too passive in the first half, but we stepped it up in the third quarter and played good defense. That's the way we've got to play it."
Byrd (4-3) scored the first five points of the second half to lead 34-25 lead - its biggest lead of the night - and Bassett looked to be in trouble. But that's when the Bengals' defense woke up.
Bassett blocked the Terriers' shots, intercepted errant passes, caused all kinds of mayhem for Byrd and went on a 22-5 run to take a 47-39 lead with 4:47 to play. The Bassett run stretched from the middle of the third quarter to the middle of the fourth.
"We adjusted our press at halftime to get back and stop their fast break," said Bengals senior guard Lori Wimbush, who scored 14 points. "Our shots weren't falling through at first, but we kept at it."
Not much went right for Bassett in the first two quarters, though. After the Bengals took a 13-8 first-quarter lead, the Terriers went on a 12-2 run paced by 6-foot-1 sophomore center Jaclyn Banks and point guard Chastity Vandergrift. They scored two baskets each during the run. Most of Byrd's baskets in the first half were inside of five feet.
But the Bengals turned aggressive in the second half. Bassett (6-0) took the lead for the first time since the first quarter when 5-5 junior guard Kim Hairston stole the ball from Vandergrift with one minute remaining in the third quarter. Vandergrift was holding the ball over her head in front of the top of the key and was looking to pass to a teammate when Hairston knocked the ball away, recovered it and made a layup.
"In the first half, we were making nothing," said Hairston, who led all scorers with 22 points. "We started going in for layups in the second half more, instead of taking bad shots. But our press is what won the game."
The teams entered the fourth quarter tied at 37, but the Bengals outscored the Terriers 14-4 to take a 51-41 lead with 3:34 to go. Byrd cut the lead to six in the closing seconds, but Bassett's defense kept the Terriers in confusion until the end.
"We had 30 turnovers," Byrd head coach Richard Thrasher said. \
see microfilm for box score
by CNB