Bulldogs headed to first state title game since '76 | HS Sports

PUBLISHER’s NOTE: LHS girls coverage to be published Sunday, March 8.

Luray knocks off Rapp a fourth-time in state semifinal, 79-61

By Randy Arrington

LURAY, March 6 — With three minutes still left in Friday night’s state semifinal, the chants started growing from the Luray student section.

“VCU! VCU! VCU!”

The Bulldogs held a 20-point lead in their fourth and final meeting with neighboring Rappahannock. In one of the loudest environments ever witnessed in the Luray High School gymnasium, a standing-room only, “SOLD OUT” crowd knew history was being made right before their eyes.

“That was a packed house, standing room only,” LHS head coach Matt Huff said after the game. “I would love to play every game like that, and we fed off of it. The guys fed off of it. I think it gave us energy, gave us a little extra spark that we needed.”

For the first time in a half century (since 1976), the LHS boys basketball team is heading back to the state championship. And to top it off…the girls basketball team (story to follow on Sunday, March 8) will be joining the boys for a shot at a state title this Friday, March 13 at VCU’s Siegel Center in Richmond.

“First time in history….so history has been made, one way or the other,” Coach Huff said. “They came out and supported us tonight…now, the good news is next Friday night, we got the girls playing at 6 and the boys at 8, so hopefully Bulldog Nation comes down to Richmond and we take over Richmond.

“Hopefully, we can go down there and come away with two state titles, and just end this magical ride we’ve been on on a high note.”

With the Region 1B championship last Friday coming down to two missed three-pointers in the final seconds that would have given Rapp the win, everyone thought this week’s state semifinal between the two Bull Run District rivals would once again go down to the wire. However, after the first eight minutes…the game began to resemble earlier matchups in the season, where the ‘Dawgs dominated.

“Defensively, we matched up really well with them, I thought,” Coach Huff said. “In the region championship game, we struggled to score a little bit…the game was in the 50s, which is in their favor. When we get it in the 60s and 70s, it’s in our favor…and we were able to get it in the 70s tonight.”

Despite getting off to a quick 5-0 start and hitting three triples in the opening frame, junior Jason Deal and the Panthers went 5-of-6 at the line and hit a pair of triples to even things out. Luray held a narrow 17-15 lead at the end of the first quarter.

With JMU-commit and Region 1B Player of the Year Matthew Owens starting out slow for Luray in the first half, senior Connor Hilliard and junior Will Judy picked up the slack — combing for 16 points in the second quarter. The Bulldogs went on a 23-12 run behind three more triples and going 8-of-11 at the line. Luray only missed two shots during the period and hit 75 percent from the floor. The home team carried a 40-27 lead into halftime.

Owens would go on to score 18 of his game-high 24 points in the second half. The senior shooting guard lead a 17-11 Luray run in the third quarter, to take a 57-38 advantage into the final frame. Coach Huff said he wasn’t concerned about Owens’s slow start.

“I’m never worried about that,”he said. “The kid is a gamer. I knew if the situation got close, we were gonna put it in his hands anyway, and he kinda took over late. You can’t say enough about that kid…he’s a gamer.”

Owens would score 11 more in the fourth, but Judy was the Bulldog that truly stepped up and had one his better games of the season. The point guard hit a three-pointer to open both the first and second quarters, recorded nine points in the fourth, and finished the game just behind Owens with a total of 22 points.

Not only did he lead and fuel the offense, but Judy recorded a few steals on defense as well. Each time he hit a big shot, especially from beyond the arc, his enthusiasm proved to be infectious and he lead the team both physically and emotionally.

“I thought Will was a first team all-region guy, an all-state kid…but unfortunately the people in the region, I guess they thought their teams were better than what they were and they didn’t vote him, which is a shame because Will is a motor,” Coach Huff said. “He’s been a spark plug for us down the stretch on this run we’ve been on since the district tournament…He’s been the guy that’s kind of ignited it and we’ve fed off of him, and he came up big for us tonight.”

After only scoring 11 in the third behind two triples from freshman Brayden Compton, Rapp actually won the final frame 23-22. First team all-region selection Deal lead the Panthers with 21 points on the night, followed by sophomore Aidan Robinson with 12 and junior Xavier Todd with 10. Overall, the Panthers hit 36 percent from the floor and 70 percent from the line, while committing 11 turnovers.

Behind Owens’ game-high 24 and Judy’s 22, Hilliard finished the game with 17 points and junior Ayden Haddock had eight. Overall, the Bulldogs hit 58 percent from the floor, 73 percent from the line, and committed seven turnovers.

Despite a deep desire to win and the growing rivalry between these two schools, there still seems to be a great deal of respect between them as well.

“Ray [Atkins] does a phenomenal job with those guys…with the run he’s made from tied for fifth or sixth in the Bull Run to the state semifinals…he’s done a phenomenal job. They’re definitely the most improved team for sure,” Coach Huff said. “I have a lot of respect for Ray and what he does over there, and a lot of respect for them…first class organization, well run, lot of respect both ways.”

But there can only be one winner — as a player from each team stated in a sportsmanship reminder to the crowd before the game (a requirement by VHSL) — and now that winner is the Bulldogs of Luray, who last sent a team to the state championship when our nation was celebrating its bicentennial.

Now, the country marks 250 years, and Luray notches another opportunity at a state championship.

“You know as a kid it’s something you dream about. Obviously when you’re a player you dream about wanting to go play for a state championship,” Coach Huff said after Friday’s state semifinal win. “I didn’t have a chance as a player, but to be able to do it as a coach with these guys… I mean we’ve been building this for three, four years… it’s indescribable… the feeling is just overjoyed.”

At 8 p.m. on Friday, March 13 in the Siegel Center at VCU — tickets must be purchased online — the Luray Bulldogs (23-6) will face off with Region C champion Fort Chiswell (24-5) for the VHSL Class 1 boys basketball state championship.

The moment is not lost on Coach Huff, who will be going for his first state title, as a player or coach.

“The fact that you spend more time with these kids in the last four or five years than you do your own kids, you develop a special bond with them. They are like my own kids… they become your own family. So, it’s just special. It’s a bond that we talk about a lot…a special bond we’ll never forget.”

VHSL Class 1 Boys State Basketball Tournament

QUARTERFINALS ~ Tuesday, March 3