THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, July 12, 1994 TAG: 9407120429
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C7 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY PAUL WHITE, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: HAMPTON LENGTH: Medium: 55 lines
After a slow start, the matchup between the state's high school girls basketball all-star teams turned into a dream game - and college coaches' worst nightmare.
West most valuable player Jenny Gates scored all seven of her team's points in the game's final two minutes as the West pulled away from the East, 82-77, in the Virginia High School Coaches Association All-Star Game at Hampton Coliseum.
But the outcome was overshadowed by injuries to two of the game's premier players - Monacan point guard Tiffany Bower and Menchville forward Misty Hart - prompting questions about the wisdom of having the players stage a 40-minute full-court exhibition when many haven't played seriously in months.
``It's a great fear for coaches,'' Old Dominion coach Wendy Larry said. ``When you have an all-star game at this time of year, when the players aren't prepared and conditioned to run the floor at the level people expect, there could be an injury. And look what happened.''
Bower, the Group AAA state player of the year who will play for the University of Virginia this fall, went down in a heap midway through the third quarter after stepping on another player's foot after a drive.
Bower had to be helped off the court and spent the next half-hour with an icepack on her right knee.
Then in the fourth quarter, Hart, an Old Dominion signee, apparently also stepped on another player's foot and hit the deck screaming in pain and clutching her left ankle. Hart was carried off the court and left the Coliseum on a stretcher.
Bower's injury isn't believed to be serious - ``maybe just a sprain,'' Salem head coach and East assistant Larry Bowman said - but the early reports on Hart aren't nearly as encouraging.
``The trainer said she thinks (Hart) may have a broken ankle,'' Bowman said.
Salem's Kelly Bradley scored 12 points, nine in the fourth quarter, to share team-high honors with East MVP Christine Roberts of Culpeper. Deep Creek's Tennille Smith added six. W.T. Woodson's Mary Klima of the West led all scorers with 20.
The lead swung back and forth until Gates broke a 75-75 tie with a 3-pointer with 1:48 remaining. Gates added a layup and two free throws, while the East could manage just one Bradley layup in the final two minutes. ILLUSTRATION: Photo
MOTOYA NAKAMURA/Staff
Deep Creek's Tennille Smith (34) of the East team shoots over West
MVP Jenny Gates in Monday night's VHSCA All-Star Game.
by CNB