Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, March 13, 1994 TAG: 9403120143
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: SCOTT BLANCHARD STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: BILOXI, MISS. LENGTH: Medium
Jay Purcell, rarely a threat to drown anybody in offense, swelled to high tide Friday when Virginia Tech needed a lifesaver.
Purcell scored 19 of his 21 points in the second half - including four free throws in the last 22 seconds - as Virginia Tech beat Virginia Commonwealth 65-64 in the first round of the Metro Conference tournament at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum.
Purcell, a senior from Blacksburg, scored Tech's first nine points of the second half and finished the game 9-for-11 from the free-throw line with six rebounds and three assists.
"We were actually kind of controlling the game at the point when he decided to take it over," said coach Sonny Smith, whose Rams team finished the season with a 14-13 record. "He's the kind of kid that'll do something like that."
Purcell made a pair of free throws with 21.8 seconds left that pushed Tech's lead to 63-58. After Tyron McCoy's 3-pointer made it 63-61, Purcell was fouled with 4.8 seconds left and made two more.
VCU's Kenny Harris hit a 35-foot 3-pointer with 1.8 seconds left, but Tech inbounded to Purcell, who threw the ball downcourt as time expired.
"It ranks right up there near the top," Purcell said of his contribution and the importance of Tech's victory. "It may be the best win I've had. I'm looking for some more."
The Hokies (18-9) play 14th-ranked Louisville (24-5), the tournament's top seed, at 7 p.m. today in one semifinal.
Fourth-seeded Tech, a one-point underdog even though it won 17 regular-season games to VCU's 14, almost didn't make it. The Hokies led by as many as 16 in the first half as the Rams missed 11 of their first 17 field-goal attempts, but VCU made eight 3-pointers in the second half and closed to 59-58 with 4 minutes, 31 seconds left.
The Rams, 6-for-17 from the line in the game, were 1-for-9 in the second half - most misses coming when they were creeping closer to Tech.
Tech coach Bill Foster's postgame observation - "When they invented the game, it was all about putting the ball in the basket" - haunted VCU. With 1 1/2 minutes left and the Hokies leading 60-58, VCU missed four shots during one scrambling possession - including three 3-pointers - before Tech's Ace Custis grabbed the ball and was fouled with 1:03 to go.
"Rebound, rebound, somebody, anybody get the rebound," Custis said he was thinking.
Custis, who made two late-game free throws in Tech's regular-season finale against North Carolina-Charlotte on Sunday, made one of two this time.
Harris missed a 3-pointer. On Tech's end, Kendrick Warren poked the ball out of Custis' hands, but McCoy walked when he tried to start a fast break. Tech inbounded, leading to Purcell's clinching free throws.
To begin the second half, Purcell drove the ball at Harris to spark Tech's offense.
"I was playing a little soft [in the first half], letting Kenny Harris put too much pressure on me," Purcell said.
Purcell's second-half performance relieved some pressure on a Tech offense that sagged after a decent first-half performance.
The Hokies wobbled in part because of three first-half fouls on Custis and Jimmy Carruth. Custis played only 10 minutes of the second half after committing his fourth foul with 13:47 left.
by CNB