Bulldogs, Panthers both fall in state quarterfinal

LHS_BB_StQvBruton_Lentz_02_27_24 — LHS senior forward Christian Lentz posted a game-high 16 points in the state quarterfinal against Bruton on Feb. 27.

Luray loses epic battle with Bruton, 50-54, at home; Panthers struggle on the road with a stacked John Marshall squad, 103-44

By Randy Arrington

LURAY, Feb. 27 — What began as a potential blowout, turned into a dramatic basketball game that kept the capacity crowd at Luray High School on their feet until the final seconds…and at the loudest volume heard inside the LHS gymnasium in years.

The Panthers of Bruton had Luray off balance in the first frame of the VHSL Class 2 state quarterfinal on Tuesday night. The Bulldogs committed five turnovers in the first eight minutes, while only hitting 30 percent of their shots from the floor. Luray’s only offense was in the front court, where seniors Ryder Liscomb and Christian Lentz had four points each in the paint. However, five different Panthers put up points in the first as Bruton built up a 19-8 lead heading into the second quarter.

The Bulldogs settled down in the second period, outscoring the visitors 12-10. Sophomore Connor Hilliard opened the second frame with two consecutive three-pointers, while Lentz and Liscomb added buckets to cut the Panther lead to nine by halftime, 29-20.

The big difference in the second and third quarters was in Luray’s defense and Bruton’s shooting. After scoring 19 points in the first, the Panthers were held to 10 points in the second quarter and only seven points in the third. Bruton went from hitting nearly 50 percent from the floor in the first, to going 7-for-27 (26 percent) over the second and third periods.

The Bulldogs went on a 16-7 run in the third frame to tie the game up at 36-36 heading into the fourth quarter. Hilliard opened up the third period with the third of four three-pointers on the night. Lentz added another four points, as he did each quarter. And after being scoreless in the first half, junior Blake Jenkins put up seven of his 11 points in the game during the third quarter, including a three-pointer.

While Bruton lead the entire first half (by as much as 21-8), the third quarter saw a tie and two lead changes, while the final period produced three ties and three lead changes in the first three minutes. Jenkins tied it at 38-38 with two free throws, then Lentz tied it at 40-40 … and again at 42-42 with buckets underneath and 4:47 left in the game.

That’s when Bruton began to build its final lead. After only committing two turnovers in the previous two quarters, Luray committed six turnovers in the fourth and went on a four-minute scoring drought in the later part of the final frame. The Bulldogs sent the Panthers to the line four times in the final 1:34, where they went 4-for-8.

Down by seven with under a minute to play, Luray got two big shots from beyond the arc from sophomore Matthew Owens and Hilliard to draw within three, 51-48, with :29.7 on the clock. Bruton would only hit one of four foul shots in the final 26 seconds to give Luray life. A basket by Jenkins — in which he went to the floor, but no foul was called — brought the game to within one point, 51-50, with only :10.2 to play.

One more free throw and one more basket by Bruton sealed the Panthers victory, 54-50. Bruton was lead by junior Brandon Freeman with 13 points, followed by senior Kareem Davis with 12 and senior Khamani Phillips with 11. Overall, the Panthers shot only 33 percent from the floor and 54 percent at the line. However, Bruton only committed two turnovers during the entire game.

Bruton advances to play Region A champion John Marshall on Friday, March 1 in the state semifinals. The Justices defeated Region B runner-up Clarke County, 120-57, on Tuesday. That marks the third time in the last four games (including the region and state tournaments) that John Marshall has exceeded 100 points.

During the state quarterfinal on Tuesday, Luray was lead by Lentz with a game-high 16 points, followed by Hilliard with 12 (four three-pointers) and Jenkins with 11. Liscomb added a hard-fought eight. Overall, Luray shot 48 percent from the floor and 80 percent from the line. The Bulldogs committed 13 turnovers, with five in the first quarter and six in the fourth.

Luray ends a stellar season at 18-8, with the Bulldogs first state tournament appearance in more than a decade.

VHSL Class 2 Boys Basketball State Tournament

Quarterfinal Results ~ Tuesday, Feb. 27

John Marshall 120, Clarke 57
Bruton 54, Luray 50
Graham 71, Gretna 65
Virginia High 50, Martinsville 36

Semifinals ~ Friday, March 1 at neutral location – TBD

Region A champion John Marshall (23-3) v. Region A runner-up Bruton (19-7)
Region D champion Virginia High (22-5) v. Region D runner-up Graham (18-8)

VHSL Class 2 State Championship ~ 2:30 p.m. Thursday, March 7 at VCU’s Siegel Center

For schedules and results, check the VHSL website.

John Marshall 103, Page County 44

RICHMOND, Feb. 27 — During Tuesday night’s state quarterfinal in Richmond at Huguenot High School, the Page County Panthers ran up against a team that had just outscored its opponents during the Region A tournament, 257-61. The Justices of John Marshall beat Central of Lunenburg, 84-14, in the region quarterfinal; Prince Edward, 98-24, in the semifinal; and Amelia, 75-23, in the Region A championship. (Exactly what you would expect from a national recruiter ~ commentary to follow soon in our editorial section.)

The powerful John Marshall team laden with collegiate talent set the tone early, jumping out to a 27-6 lead in the first quarter. Six different Justices would put up points, while Page only hit two buckets from the floor and committed eight turnovers. JM’s stingy, quick defense was more the cause for turnovers rather than any sloppy play by the Panthers.

Page settled down and improved in the second quarter, but John Marshall never took their foot off the gas…(even leaving starters on the floor in the fourth quarter when they were up by 60 points.) PCHS senior Adryn Martin put up six of Page’s 10 points in the second quarter. The Panthers trailed 49-16 at half.

Again, Page improved its output in the third quarter, but so did John Marshall. The Justices went on a 33-17 run over the eight-minute period, including three triples and six players putting up points. Page County hit 50 percent of their shots during the frame, including four three-pointers — two from senior Faith Mason, one from sophomore Ali Purdham, and one from senior Bailee Gaskins.

Purdham opened up the fourth quarter with two shots from beyond the arc and a traditional “plus-one” three-point play to score nine of Page’s 11 points in the final frame. The Panthers conceded with 4:33 on a running clock and took out seniors Gaskins and Mason, who went down the line hugging each coach.

Page County fell, 103-44, in the state quarterfinal, ending their stellar season at 20-10. During the state semifinal, Page was lead by Purdham with 15 points, followed by Mason with 10 and Martin with eight. Overall, Page shot 35 percent from the floor, went 3-of-8 from the line and committed 25 turnovers.

The Justices had five players in double digits and were lead by junior Yasmin Hall with a game-high 23 points. Eighth grader Tiara Herron scored 21 points, while junior Kiyah Lewis put up 19, senior Janiyaha Pickett had 11 and senior R’Mia Crutchfield added 10. Overall, John Marshall shot 68 percent from the floor, went 7-for-14 at the line, and committed 11 turnovers.

John Marshall moves to 19-8 on the season and advances to a VHSL Class 2 state semifinal to face Region 2B champion Strasburg. The Rams defeated Region A runner-up Amelia, 67-38, on Tuesday.

VHSL Class 2 Girls Basketball State Tournament

Quarterfinal Results ~ Tuesday, Feb. 27