THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, January 28, 1996 TAG: 9601250226
SECTION: CAROLINA COAST PAGE: 18 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Sports
SOURCE: BY JEFF ZEIGLER
CORRESPONDENT
DATELINE: PLYMOUTH LENGTH: Short : 42 lines
L.C. Thrash's free throw took the monkey off the back of Bud Hendrix.
Thrash sank one of two free throws late in the game to help Manteo dump Plymouth 61-60 last Friday and give Hendrix, Manteo's boys basketball coach, his first win in Plymouth in his five years as coach.
Although it was only the first Northeastern Conference game for both teams, it was a huge win for Manteo since the Redskins are expected to challenge Plymouth and Southeast Halifax for top honors in the conference.
The Redskins nearly blew a five-point lead with under a minute to play. Two straight Plymouth baskets cut the Manteo lead to 60-58. With 14 seconds to play, Thrash was fouled and hit one of two free throws to put Manteo up 61-58. The bucket turned out to be a big one because it at least forced a tie game should the Vikings convert on their next possession.
The Vikings did convert, but not the way they wanted. Temell Purkett canned a jumper at the buzzer, but he was inside the three-point arc, giving Manteo the one-point victory.
The Redskins continue to have balanced scoring throughout the lineup. Against Plymouth, Darius Collins scored 11 points and dished off seven assists, Chris Sillis scored 11 points, Jason Summerton added nine points, and Stefan Fus scored nine points, grabbed eight rebounds, and blocked three shots. Three key players, Danny Davis, Patrick McNeeley, and Ashley O'Neal, missed the game because of injury or illness.
Hendrix was happy to finally get his first win in Plymouth.
``It's a good way to start the conference,'' he said. ``Even when we won the conference in 1993-94 and we went 9-1, our first loss was at Plymouth.'' by CNB