Pressure in third quarter propels King William past Panthers
King William's Dylan Leach (34) finds shooting a difficult task due to defensive pressure from the senior trio of Walter Gordon (right), Jaquane Wyatt (left) and Jestin Harris (behind).Andre' Jones photo
After battling the invading King William Cavaliers score for score in the first half, Charles City’s Panthers looked poise to close out the home season. Unfortunately, a ramped up press triggered a run that allowed the visitors to put the game out of reach.
King William employed a 2-2-1 full-court press midway through the third quarter, resulting in six Panther turnovers and a 12-2 run and propelling the visitors to a 50-40 victory.
The Feb. 6 contest saw Panther upperclassmen start the night in recognition of senior night. The cast responded from the tip, as a Brandon Vaden jumper followed by a Thomas Kelly three-pointer gave the hosts a 5-0 lead.
King William slowly crawled back into the game, overtaking the Panthers 6-5 before exiting the opening frame with an 11-9 lead. Both teams continued to exchange baskets, resulting in a 20-20 deadlock at intermission.
With no offensive spark midway through the third quarter, the visitors called a timeout just under the five minute mark. The ploy worked for the Cavaliers, with Gary Shannon draining two trifectas and teammate Shawn Parker contributing one of his own to spark a 12-2 run for the guests to give them 11-point lead (37-26).
Trailing by nine (38-29) heading into the fourth, Charles City scrambled to fight back into the contest. A Vaden lay-in followed by a pair of Noah Ragland free throws cut the deficit to five (38-33). That margin, however, would be the closest the Panthers would get for the remainder of the night. King William would capitalize from the charity stripe and pull away for the double digit victory.
After the contest, head coach Cullen Jenkins referenced basics as the reason his team fell to a depleted Cavaliers roster who were missing their top two scorers.
“We missed free throws tonight,” said the disappointed coach. “It’s been the little things all year long that have hurt us.
“I don’t think their press was a deciding factor in this game,” Jenkins responded when asked if the defensive switch by the visitors had an effect on his team play. “Yes, they forced turnovers on us, but we missed a lot of easy shots and scores in the game.”
Charles City (2-17), received a team high 12 points from Ragland, with nine of them coming in the second quarter. Jestin Harris pumped in eight, Kyle Jones tossed in seven, Vaden and Walter Gordon added four apiece, Kelly scored three, and Michael Grubbs chipped in with two.
King William’s Dylan Leach led all scorers in the game with 17 points.