By Jerry Reid
Romping to a win by 54 points at Orange County, the Warriors basketball team came roaring off the snow break to also crush Fluvanna County High School by 31 points. With two regular season games left, Darren Maynard’s team seems to be in a mindset that could lead to a Jefferson District title. In his twentieth season with eight titles already, this is not unfamiliar turf for him.
At Powhatan last Tuesday night, and closing the books with a payback possibility against Albemarle this Friday, the Warriors are energized. An earlier loss to Albemarle in their house could be just the ticket to get the team and Crozet Crazies cranked up for a title celebration.
For the Fluvanna game, call it havoc or call it chaos, the Warriors were all over the floor. They hounded the Flucos players, snagging the majority of loose balls. Spectators were nearly made dizzy watching the ball move back and forth on the court. In the end, the energy, plus the height and wingspan of Western’s players, completely stifled any serious threat by Fluvanna in the paint. The Warriors offense hammered together a 22-1 run late in the first quarter that effectively sealed the win.
Chris McGahren and Ryan Ingram were stout defensively with Ingram bouncing across and sliding on the floor. Both also contributed on offense, with McGahren tallying 10 points. Carrington Murphy, who looks and plays taller and wider than his 6’-5” frame, knocked down 11 points. Included in that total was at least one graceful station-to-station layup. His seven rebounds (75 on the year) led both teams. The interior of the Warriors defense altered Fluvanna’s shots, contesting most attempts to score by the much smaller Flucos.
Coach Darren Maynard was running batches of players in and out of the game, playing the roster, but there was no respite for the Flucos. This team suffers little if any drop-off in production by going to the bench, sometimes swapping five for five. They simply wear down opponents with fresh, talented bodies. Mike Vale, with a deft inside touch and second-most rebounds (93) on the team through the Fluvanna win, was in the thick of many skirmishes in the paint, as was Austin Cress with 106 caroms snagged. Will Cress, John Barkley and others contributed to this win and the experience the whole team got is invaluable at this stage of the season.
“I thought we played well,” said Ingram. “We had a few lapses and the first part of the game we slowed down, but then we picked it up. We’ve got to play well on Tuesday (Powhatan) and then play Albemarle. I need to play better defense, go after the ball, make clutch stops so we can get the ball back.”
“We’ve got to bring our best selves every day to practice, and every game, not take anything for granted,” said McGahren. “We can’t let up. And I think we did that today. Our energy this last week has been much better than prior.” McGahren also believes wholeheartedly in the substitution scheme designed by Maynard, saying that the constant energy whether on the floor or on the bench is one of the things making them a great team.
Coach Maynard likes what he saw against Fluvanna. “I thought we brought very good energy tonight. We pressured them and held them to a really low point total until we sort of eased up a little towards the end,” he said. Powhatan was on his mind first, but recalling this season’s losses at Charlottesville and Albemarle, he was happy to be home this Friday against Albemarle.
He believes this team shadows some others that have made moves in the post season. Maynard knows it’s a tough road to travel—the conference title is no gimme, and regionals even tougher—but maybe he has a gut feeling that augurs well for the Warriors.
“They remind me of the kind of teams I’ve had that have actually gone to places such as that. That doesn’t mean they surely will, but it’s in that ballpark. We’re really deep this year, probably the deepest team I’ve ever coached. We legitimately have five or 10 starter-quality players, and that’s rare.”
Coming out of the Fluvanna game, the Warriors are scoring at a 64.6 clip, while allowing a paltry 45.1 points per game. Statistically, the Warriors have a plethora of players scoring. Leading is Ingram averaging 13.1 points per game, Josh Coffman with 9 per game, MacGahren with 8.2, and Vale, Murphy, Yancey, Carter, W. Cress and A. Cress all around five points per game. No one is looking past the next two games, but the pump is primed for postseason.
The Jefferson District Tournament will be held February 10-12. The Conference 29 Tourney is set for February 16-20, with WAHS hosting games on the 19th and 20th, and Regionals are slated for February 22-26, with Cave Spring High School in Roanoke hosting on the 25th and 26th.
