ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Tuesday, February 11, 1997 TAG: 9702110112
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JOHN A. MONTGOMERY SPECIAL TO THE ROANOKE TIMES
Patrick Henry point guard Ronnie Kasey is well known as a 3-point threat.
But not usually from the other side of the timeline, on an opponent's court.
Kasey stole an inbounds pass with two seconds remaining in the third quarter of the PH-Cave Spring basketball game Monday, whirled, and converted the 50-foot shot. Of all the momentum swings in Patrick Henry's 74-69 Roanoke Valley District victory, Kasey's remarkable heave may have been the most pivotal.
``I practice that shot everyday, and make it most of the time,'' Kasey said, a claim substantiated by his coach Jack Esworthy. ``But tonight I just stole the ball and threw it up. I thought it was going to be an airball.''
Airballs weren't part of Kasey's repertoire Monday. The 5-foot-7 senior hit eight of 10 shots from the floor, including six 3-pointers, to lead the Patriots with 26 points. Teammate Boo Battle, the district's leading scorer, had 24, mostly inside.
Although PH (14-4 overall, 6-1 RVD), which took a half-game lead in the district over William Fleming, led by as many as eight points (65-57) midway through the final period, Cave Spring (12-7, 3-4) closed to within three (67-64) when Knight swingman Corey Paxton hit a 3-pointer with 1:31 left. The Patriots eventually clinched the game when freshman Mike Peery made four consecutive free-throw tries and senior Malik Shareef made both of his attempts.
``Kasey's a fantastic player, the best guard we'll see all year long,'' said Cave Spring coach Billy Hicks. ``Kasey was hitting shots - with people in his face - from 22 and 23 feet.''
Kasey and Battle combined to offset the 26-point effort of Cave Spring center Alex Phillips, whose post moves repeatedly kept the Knights within striking distance. Phillips made four straight field-goal attempts in the final period before Battle blocked his shot in the lane with less than 40 seconds to play and Cave Spring trailing 68-64.
``That was a big play,'' Esworthy said.
``Cave Spring played with a lot more intensity than when we played them the first time,'' Esworthy said. ``When you beat a team by 20 points [90-70] and then go to their place, that's motivation in itself. We knew coming in this game would be a dogfight.''
Both teams shot well. PH connected on 25 of 49 shots from the floor, slightly better than Cave Spring's 22-of-48.
``I'm as pleased as I can be with a loss,'' said Hicks. ``We shortened the game by walking the ball up the floor, and we got the ball in to Alex. If PH is the best team in our league, we're not far behind.''
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