Richards hits six three-pointers and game-high total of 24 points
By Randy Arrington
SHENANDOAH, Jan. 23 — Page County remains in a thee-way tie for second place in the Bull Run District after a solid win Friday night over a tough Rappahannock team that started off 7-0, but has gone 3-4 since. Page’s biggest scoring threat rode the bench after early foul trouble, but seven other teammates would enter the scorebook and grind out an important district win against “the other” Panthers, 66-56.
“They’re solid. They got us at their place [Dec. 18, 50-46], we had a little bit of revenge on our mind, trying to bounce back from our early week loss [to Luray],” PCHS head coach Tyler Parker said after Friday’s win. “I didn’t think that we played to our full potential, but it’s always good to get a Bull Run District win.”
PCHS senior Caden Combs was held to only seven points on the night, four of those in the first seven minutes. The shooting guard would score his final three points in the last two minutes. Page’s leading scorer played a minimal role in the second and third quarters.
“Early foul trouble got him and we had to limit his minutes,” Coach Parker said. “Luckily some guys stepped up and played really big. I thought our bench really won the game for us there, and Dawson Richards got hot too.”
Richards, a 6’2″ senior forward, hit six three-pointers en route to a game-high 24 points. He lead the way with eight points and a pair of triples in the opening fame, as Page County got hot early and jumped out to a 20-11 lead by the end of the first quarter. The home team hit 50 percent of their shots and went perfect at the line.
“We knew that they were gonna throw some zone at us and if we could get the ball moving and find No. 20 [Richards], that he was going to knock some shots down and he did,” Coach Parker said.
With the amount of talent that Rapp has — and with Combs off the court — the visiting Panthers outpaced the home team in both the second (17-13) and third (16-12) quarters. Rapp’s 6’3″ junior forward Jason Deal scored all of his 10 points on the night in the first two periods, including back-to-back three-pointers to end the half. Page still lead at the break, but Rapp had cut the deficit from nine down to five and trailed 33-28.
“I challenged the guys to give me all their heart, make sure that they stayed focused, and they did,” Rapp head coach Ray Atkins said after the game. “They made some big shots, but at the end…we just turned the ball over too much tonight.”
Rapp committed 17 turnovers on the night. However, Page committed 18.
While both teams recorded a hat trick of three-pointers in the second quarter, Rapp remained on that pace in the third and carried the momentum to within one point of Page, 45-44, heading into the fourth. Rapp junior Xavier Todd hit his first of three triples in the third quarter, and then went on to score seven of Rapp’s 12 points in the fourth.
“He’s a great kid,” Rapp head coach Ray Atkins said of Todd. “He pushes hard.”
In the absence of Combs, Page also had someone who pushed hard, especially in the second half. Senior forward Isaac Foltz scored 11 of his 13 points on the night in the second half, and battled hard in the paint for rebounds as well.
“He usually starts a little late,” Coach Parker said. “In early third quarter, fourth quarter he gets going for us in the second half and he’s helped us pull away in some wins here lately, so we’re really happy with his play.”
Page went on a 21-12 run to finish the game and secure a 10-point victory. They matched Rapp’s two triples and went 5-of-8 at the line. Five different Page players scored in the final frame.
“Like I said, the turnovers and honestly, we need to start rebounding the ball better,” Coach Atkins said. “We’re just getting out-rebounded here lately.”
Todd lead Rapp with 14 points, followed by freshman Brayden Compton with 13 and and Deal with 11. Both senior Mason Comer and sophomore Aidan Robinson added seven each. Overall, Rapp hit 37 percent of their shots from the field and went 10-of-11 at the line.
Rappahannock (4-4, 10-4) now sits alone at third place in the Bull Run and should feel no impact from the winter storm as they are not scheduled to play again until next Friday, Jan. 30, when they hit the road to Madison (2-6, 4-12).
Page County (6-2, 10-6) — who sits in a tie for second with Luray (6-2, 12-3) and Strasburg (6-2, 9-6) — was scheduled to hit the road Saturday morning for an 11 a.m. tip-off with the Rams, trying to get ahead of the winter storm forecast to get underway late Saturday evening. Depending upon the impact of that winter storm, the Panthers may or may not travel to Harrisonburg High School on Monday night for a 7 p.m. start.
“We’re pressuring the ball well, but we’re getting beat off the dribble a little too much for my liking…so we’ve got to fix our own ball defense. The pressure’s great, just sliding our feet and playing better defense where they don’t blow by us and make sure we got some help and rotate,” Coach Parker said of what his team needs to work on down the final stretch of the regular season. “So our defense can be tweaked a little bit better, but our offense was rolling tonight.”
For schedules, rosters and results, check the Bull Run District website.
•••
RELATED ARTICLES
Bulldogs dominate first rivalry game with Panthers, 72-48
Combs records historic night in win over Clarke
Panthers drop second one-point loss to Knights in overtime, 63-62
Be the first to comment