Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, December 10, 1994 TAG: 9412140069
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C-2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DWIGHT FOXX STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Ahmad Terry answered his call. Terry came off the bench to score 17 points and grab seven rebounds, and Stokes had his usual brilliant game with 15 points and 17 boards as the Colonels defeated George Washington-Danville 73-61 at William Fleming High School in a non-district boys' basketball game.
Stokes was simply sensational in the first half with 11 points and 10 rebounds as the Colonels took a 34-24 advantage to the locker room. Terry chipped in six points and two rebounds to offset a subpar first-half performance by senior point guard Derrick Hines.
Hines, the player many consider the best point guard in the state, had only two points - and two turnovers - at halftime.
``He didn't play well at all,'' coach Burrall Paye said of Hines' first-half performance. ``He was trying to do too much. He was pressing a little bit.''
In the second half, Hines demonstrated the skills that made his reputation last season with some tremendous passes in the lane and penetration moves to the basket. In the fourth quarter, he wooed the Colonels' crowd with a dazzling dribbling exhibition that lasted two minutes. He would score 15 of his 17 points in the second half to tie Terry for team-high honors.
With Hines getting into the act in the second half, Stokes and Terry helped him keep GW-Danville at bay. The Fleming (2-1) lead for Fleming (0-2) ranged from eight to 16 points, but the Colonels never were in trouble, thanks to Hines' ballhandling and Stokes and Terry playing volleyball on the backboards. Fleming outrebounded GW-Danville 38-21 in the contest.
No one was happier to see Terry have a great game than Stokes. He showed all 32 with the mention of his teammate.
``I was so proud of him,'' Stokes said. ``If he plays like that, we can't be beat.''
Terry says he has a cousin who is like E.F. Hutton to him. That cousin is George Lynch, the former Patrick Henry and North Carolina star who now plays for the NBA's Los Angeles Lakers.
``He always tells me to just get out there and work hard and rebound,'' Terry said. ``My dad [John Lynch] told me I couldn't come home without the ball.''
Late in the third quarter, GW-Danville had cut its deficit to eight, 49-41, but Terry came down the floor, posted up in the paint, scored and was fouled. He hit his free throw to complete the three-point play and push the Fleming lead back to 11.
Paye said during practice Thursday he could tell Terry was starting to take his game to a higher plateau.
``He didn't have a good practice on Wednesday, but Thursday he started coming on,'' said the Colonels' 18th-year head coach. ``He's starting to get in shape and that's going to help him get even better.''
Harry Johnson, GW-Danville's coach, knew he was fighting a losing battle, particularly with four players playing in today's Group AAA Division 6 championship football game.
``We feel like we're fighting a bear with a switch right now,'' Johnson said. ``Playing against a team like Fleming gives us a chance to let our young players get some experience. It's a loss, but it's the first part of the season. We wanted to win, but losing to Fleming is nothing to be ashamed of.''
Quincy Freeman and Keath Hampton added 10 points each as five Colonels scored in double figures.
``We still have two players hurt,'' Paye said. ``Sterling Tate should make us a little bit better; we're progressing.''
Thanks to Terry, last season's Group AAA runners-up are improving at a rapid pace.
GW-Danville (61)
Graves 3 0-0 7, Reese 8 2-4 21, Q.Jones 6 7-7 20, R.Jones 3 0-1 6, Smith 2 0-0 5, Wimbush 1 0-0 2. Totals 23 9-12 61.
William Fleming (73)
Hines 4 9-9 17, Freeman 5 0-0 10, Hampton 2 4-6 10, Pannell 2 0-2 4, Stokes 6 3-4 15, Terry 8 1-1 17. 27 17-22 73.
GW-Danville 9--15--21--16-61
William Fleming 14--20--21--18-73
Three-point goals: Hampton 2, Reese 3, Q.Jones, Smith, Graves. Total Fouls: GW-Danville 18, William Fleming 16.
JV: William Fleming, 65-50.
by CNB