Greetings from the Norfolk Scope Arena! We're back for Day 2 of 4 at the Scope as teams will be punching their ticket to the State Tournament in Girls and Boys Basketball across the state at the Class 6 and Class 5 level, plus regional titles will be going out on Monday night along with Tuesday night.

We have four games today at Scope and we'll provide updates + thoughts throughout here and on Twitter @ hatfieldsports ...

1 PM in Girls 5A Semis - #1 Princess Anne (20-1) vs. #4 Norview (19-4)
3 PM in Girls 5A Semis - #2 Kempsville vs. #3 Hampton
5 PM in Boys 6A Semis - #1 Green Run (20-3) vs. #4 Nansemond River (16-7)
7 PM in Boys 6A Semis - #2 Maury (23-3) vs. #6 Norview (16-9)

VHSL Boys Basketball Brackets Here
See Full VHSL Basketball Brackets (Boys & Girls) on VHSL Site Here

Green Run senior guard Ashley James - the Beach District Player of the Year - banks in a 3-pointer just inside half-court at the buzzer to give his team a 66-63 win over Nansemond River in Virginia Region 5A semifinal action at the Norfolk Scope on Saturday, February 23, 2019.

It's the first State Playoff berth since 1984 for Green Run. James had 30 points on 11-of-14 shooting in the victory.

The Maury Commodores are headed to the State Playoffs in year two at the helm under Brandon Plummer. After the heart-break of last year's regional tourney, falling as a #1 seed in the opening round to #8 seed Salem - the Cinderella Region 5A Champ - here they are now a win away from capturing the regional crown. They'll take on Green Run in a much-anticipated clash of Class 5 title contenders coming up on Tuesday night at the Norfolk Scope.

Both teams are fairly familiar with one another, having previously been Atlantic Conference 9 rivals that would meet at least twice a year, and for a couple of years during the postseason at the conference tourney or regional level. Maury won their last regional playoff meeting in the semifinals at Churchland High during the freshman year of one Matt Coleman, who's now playing at Texas.

It'll be Matt's brother - Chase - and senior classmates Bryan Phillips and Matthew Mensia trying to lead the Commodores past a Stallions team that is leaning heavily on Ashley James, even more so now that super sub Elijah Kennedy will be unavailable due to injury.

Clutch conversions by Rupert and longtime Maury #1 fan Darryl Holley applauds behind the hoop.

We're talking about someone who is under 60% shooting for the year for sure from the charity stripe in Rupert delivering two big ones in a pressurized spot.

The best way to describe this one is if you're a Maury fan, it's a foul. If you're a Norview fan, the ref should swallow the whistle. Anything else and it's certainly up for debate.

1:06 to go - Norview 51, Maury 49. Norview ball out of the time-out.

Ricardo Foster's Pilots have to be smart here with the basketball, using clock and taking the best shot available when it becomes available. Keep it in the hands of Jamaal Madison and Jaylani Darden; they're the playmakers.

3:46 to go - Maury 47, Norview 46. Jahn Hines has 18 points, including the last 2FT's for Norview.

Chase Coleman then goes glass to put Maury back up three as we tick near three minutes to go.

Norview ball and they call time with 2:51 to play, trailing 49-46.

Maury now leads Norview 44-42 with 6:23 to play in the contest. Bryan Phillips had the go-ahead basket early in the fourth period for Maury.

Maury sophomore Keshaun Tonsall has caught my eye as a player on the rise. We haven't seen him make a major impact this year, but off the bench he's giving Head Coach Brandon Plummer some good minutes. In fact, his latest basket from long distance cuts the Norview lead down to 38-36 with 2:32 to go.

Norview has to be cognizant of their athleticism along the baseline and use that to their advantage. That also means staying patient offensively and not getting caught in jacking quick perimeter shots.

As for Maury, the Commodores will need to keep relying on the defense to turn instant offense, and while they want their guards attacking off the dribble, stay within the flow of the offense and don't forget about both wing Matthew Mensia and inside presence Clarence Rupert.

This one might come down to free-throws at the end.

Not sure how you follow up that fantastic ballgame, but the likes of Maury and Norview will attempt to in our nightcap.

Right now it's Norview doubling up Maury. Norview has come out hungrier in the first portion of this one from my view. Lashaun Lee, the big 6-foot-8 presence inside, has been a factor.

Keep in mind that the Pilots lost both regular season meetings to Maury - 59-54 and 54-53. So not much separates these two Norfolk rivals.

An unbelievable game and finish. Told former Maury Head Basketball Coach Jack Baker here in attendance that was the most thrilling ballgame here at the Scope for reginoals since his Commodores outlasted King's Fork in a triple-overtime thriller.

Green Run is going to the State Tournament for the first time since 1984. For Nansemond River, a heart-breaking finish, but a tremendous job done by Coach Ed Young, his staff and players to get this far and push one of the very best in all of Class 5 to the brink.

Ashley James, take a bow. Likewise for the players and coaches on both sides. That game represented so much of what is great about High School Sports, including the sportsmanship exhibited when Elijah Kennedy suffered the scary injury.

Simply speechless! The Scope is rocking right now!

That instant classic featured eight lead changes and six ties in the fourth period alone. An ultimate seesaw battle.

Heck of a ballgame. Watch out for Justin Fatherly - I've watched him hit two late game enormous three-pointers earlier this season. Biggest free-throws in the life of James, too.

3:13 to play - Green Run 57, Nansemond River 57. Jeremiah Lewis with 2FT's to tie it up.

It's Ashley James to Karree Smith for 2, then Justin Fatherly with a magic act finish. We're deadlocked again at 59-apiece, ticking under 2 minutes to go!

As Bryan Black of the Pilot just put it, "These two teams have been so even today, it would be a crime if this game didn't go to overtime."

Touche.

4:22 to play - Green Run 55, Nansemond River 53. Ashley James with 4 of the last 5 points for GR. Justin Fatherly to shoot a pair at the line for NR.

4:53 to play - Nansemond River 53, Green Run 50. Jakari Joy with the basket and the NR fans are on their feet here at Scope.

An intentional foul called on Nansemond River, so a couple of free-throws coming for Ashley James. He makes both to cut it to 53-52 in favor of the Warriors.

Coach Harris just watched sophomore George Wilson get a Technical for celebrating earlier and almost got a second after drawing a charge. He's livid. The Nansemond River are also beginning to do their tomahawk chop and we have a potential photo finish folks.

Much as we've seen during this hot run for Nansemond River - 12-2 in their last 14 games - they are getting great energy from their second unit and the Warriors are oozing with confidence.

Green Run is going to lean on its backcourt combo of Ashley James and Jake Cooper to bring them home.

You get the sense Nansemond River is about to go on a run and this is a spot where Green Run misses their sixth man - Elijah Kennedy - in a major way.

Nansemond River is on a 6-0 run now to cut the Green Run lead to five. Ashley James is starting to get in a groove, though. I'm not sure Nansemond River has the ability defensively to stop him, nor do I think the Stallions have the ability to shut down Justin Fatherly (15 points) for the Warriors.

Not sure who - if anyone for that matter - feels good at half-time. Everyone in the arena is buzzing about the gruesome injury to sophomore Elijah Kennedy, slipping as he went in for a lay-up with the game tied at 11-apiece with two minutes to go in the opening quarter.

That play from Ashley James could be a big momentum boost for Green Run going to the locker room. James has been plagued by turnover (five himself in fact) in that opening half, but he's starting to settle in after a slow start. He also got off to a slow start in their regional quarterfinal win over Princess Anne.

Nansemond River is getting beat 22-11 on the backboards, but if they improve in that area, this is a very winnable game for Ed Young and his upset-minded crew.

Nansemond River is getting pretty solid play from its bench with Myron Brown, Myles Evans and others. They aren't so much providing major production statistically, but allowing them to keep the main five out of foul trouble, while Green Run's fouls are piling up tonight.

Green Run Head Coach Kenneth Harris uses a time-out with 5:04 left in the second period and his team up seven, not playing particularly well. Since the injury to Eli Kennedy of Green Run, Nansemond River has also lost its rhythm that they were in, and sadly, the game has a somber feel to it now.

The Stallions have turned it over 11 times, but the Warriors have been unable to capitalize on them and turn those into easy points.

End 1stQ in Region 5A Hoops Semis at Scope - Green Run 15, Nansemond River 11 Play has resumed after the injury to Green Run sophomore sub Elijah Kennedy (averaging 7.8PPG on the year coming in). Six different Stallions have scored, five different Warriors have scored.

This building has gone silent here at the Scope. The game was going great with back-and-forth action until this terrible injury occurred.

Coming up our the boys in action with Green Run taking on Nansemond RIver - an intriguing matchup of good friends with Warriors head man Ed Young and Green Run Head Coach Kenneth Harris. Young once coached at Green Run, which hasn't been to the State Tournament since 1984. The Warriors are trying to reach the State Playoffs for the first time since 2007.

With only three seniors on the roster, Kempsville will be left wondering what could've been in this one as some of those misses kept them from completing the comeback. Kudos to Hampton for holding its composure and a big steal just a moment ago from Lanae' Stokes will allow them to put this one away.

With 1:40 remaining, Hampton is now up 10 after a couple more free-throws. Kempsville has yet to connect from three-point range and that has hurt them.

A Technical - we're not sure what for - has been called on Kempsville (perhaps a book issue I'm guessing?) and that gives freshman Jayla Hearp of Hampton two more foul shot attempts. As long as Hampton takes care of the ball, they'll come out on top in this one.

A year ago, Hampton played Norview in the regional semifinals in an overtime game that they lost. One has to wonder will that experience help them down the stretch here, whereas this is Kempsville's first time on this big stage with a State Playoff berth on the line with this cast of players.

The winner gets Princess Anne - a Championship fixture - on Tuesday night in the regional title game. Hampton also scrimmaged Princess Anne before the season, so like Kempsville, they have seen them before.

Basketball is truly a game of runs. Kempsville is feeding off their defensive energy and the crowd.

Hampton has to go back to forcing Kempsville to shoot from the perimeter and deny the paint, but more importantly, their offense has to be more patient and not force the issue when a good shot isn't there.

Right now Hampton is starting to rush shots offensively, turn the ball over with some ill-advised passes and the activity on defense for Kempsville has increased greatly. Junior guard Malia McCoy has really elevated her play in this period and now the lead for the Lady Crabbers is just five - 38-33 - with under a minute to go in the quarter.

I know Hampton Girls Head Coach Shanda Bailey is probably wanting to save a time-out and get to the fourth quarter, but they could use one to get back on track and keep this thing from becoming a one-possession game before the final stanza arrives.

Kempsville has a clear size advantage on the front-line, but Hampton's quickness defensively is giving them problems. They are having trouble getting ball into the post, and once they do, they've not been able to finish as consistently.

Darryl Moore's crew would like to move on to the State Tournament - the program hasn't reached the Final Four round since 1996. Their only two losses came to Princess Anne, who they'd meet for a third time this season if they are able to rally and make it to Tuesday night's regional title game here at the Scope.

It's startling to me that Kempsville has yet to make a free-throw or three-pointer. They're going to need someone to help jump-start the offense, whether it's Malia McCoy or talented freshman Cate Carlson.

Hampton's superb freshman - Jayla Hearp - got going late in the first half and they will certainly look to feed off her energy for the remainder of this one.

Kempsville Head Girls Basketball Coach Darryl Moore - who has done a stellar job re-building that program and also had to pull double duty while coaching the boys at the end of the season - is shaking his head with 2:02 to go before intermission and his team trailing by six. That's because Hampton is in the penalty, shooting 1&1 the rest of the half.

Hampton is sharing the ball exceedingly well with nine assists on 10 field goals, three of them by the freshman Jayla Hearp.

The iron was unkind early for Lanae Stokes of Hampton until she drains one from long distance to give her squad a 16-14 lead. Unfortunately, a couple plays later, she goes down with an injury and limps off with 4:10 before the first half.

Coach Shanda Bailey of Hampton will need some to step up off the bench with her out of the lineup. Freshman Jayla Hearp was the Peninsula District Player of the Year and surprisingly has yet to score in this contest.

Hadlea Valera leads the way for Kempsville with six points.

In case you're wondering, we have 62 free-throws and 51 turnovers combined with three minutes to go, so this game has lagged on for that reason. I wish someone could steal these officials' whistles to be perfectly honest.

To beat Princess Anne, you must have something working extremely well and force them into uncharacteristic mistakes. For example, Oakton has experienced success against them via the three-point shot. Lake Taylor had a dynamic playmaker in Fitzgerald the year they beat them in the title game, and Salem actually won against the Lady Cavs in the regional semis a couple years ago when Brianna Jackson was a sophomore.

Norview today is 0-for-13 from three-point land and PA has cruised to a 57-28 lead with 5:52 remaining.

At 49-24 with Princess Anne up on Norview with under a minute left in the third quarter, Jonathan Wilson and his Lady Pilots deserve some credit for not throwing in the towel. The quarter is just 17-14 in favor of PA and Norview has battled them pretty well for this stretch. Of course, the Lady Cavs aren't going to budge much, though.

Johnson has eight points, four rebounds and three steals. The Lady Cavs can survive moving forward without her, but it would shorten the rotation even more for Darnell Dozier as Tiyanna James has been on the shelf this season with a torn ACL. Of course, no one around the state will feel sorry for Coach Dozier and company with how they have simply obliterated the competition in many ways over the years.

Tell you what, it's scary that Princess Anne has won five straight state titles, good chance it'll be six in a row, and both of the star guards on this team - Aziaha James (Class of 2021) and Jasha Clinton (2020) - don't graduate yet.

Let's go through some numbers. Remember, the winner punches its ticket to the State Tournament. We already know Highland Springs Girls will be waiting for the runner-up in Region 5A as they defeated L.C. Bird. The Lady Springers under Head Coach Franklin Harris rallied from 10 down at the half to win that game. So that means Bird travels to the '757' area code to see the Region 5A Champ, which there's a very strong likelihood that will be Princess Anne.

The backcourt work of Aziaha James, who showed the shooting touch from the perimeter late in the half, and Jasha Clinton was a thing of beauty for Princess Anne fans as Brianna Jackson watched from the bench after setting the tone in this one.

Norview under Head Coach Jonathan Wilson, who has gone from taking the boys basketball program to the State Championship game a few years ago against Henrico to putting the girls a win away from a second straight State Playoff berth, is building a nice program. They have just three seniors on the roster with four freshmen, four sophomores and a couple of juniors.

It's a tough region to come out of obviously with Princess Anne, and once the regional brackets came out and the draw was on the same side of the Lady Cavaliers, they knew what they were up against.

A lot of praise and hype has surrounded Princess Anne's sophomore sensation Aziaha James and rightfully so; she's definitely a Player of the Year candidate alongside her teammate in Brianna Jackson. But this team has more than just two Division I prospects as junior guard Jasha Clinton has potential to play at that level for sure and Mahogany Lester - a senior signed with Maryland-Eastern Shore - is no slouch either.

Lester is the daughter of former NBA No. 1 overall draft choice Joe Smith, a Hampton Roads Sports Hall of Famer who starred at Maury High in Norfolk.

Even with Princess Anne not shooting at a great clip to start, they are absolutely dominating defensively. Brianna Jackson on the interior looks the part of a future ACC player and she's a game-changer at both ends of the court. One could make the case she's the best inside player to come through the storied PA program since Elizabeth Williams, an All-American at Duke now playing in the WNBA.

Speaking of Williams, her brother Mark - of Norfolk Academy - plays for a TCIS Tournament Championship this evening against Bishop Sullivan. Just thought I'd throw that out there.

Princess Anne has won nine State Championships under its legendary sideline boss Darnell Dozier and this figures to be a year where they are prohibited favorite to capture the tenth. It would be their sixth in a row - a VHSL record (their five in a row already is a VHSL record by the way for girls or boys basketball)

Coming into the region tourney, the Lady Cavaliers were averaging 83.2 points and giving up just 35.1 points a contest - unfathomable figures. This Princess Anne program has won 13 straight State Tournament games. Their last State Playoff loss came on March 8, 2013 to Lake Taylor in the AAA State Finals at VCU by a count of 56-53. That day, Feyonda Fitzgerald of Lake Taylor scored 33 points. She went on to play at Temple.

2 PM in Girls 6A Semis - #2 Western Branch 61, #3 Landstown 43
4 PM in Girls 6A Semis - #1 Ocean Lakes 61, #4 Kellam 58
6 PM in Boys 6A Semis - #3 Landstown 76, #2 Western Branch 48
8 PM in Boys 6A Semis - #1 Oscar Smith 73, #5 Granby 52

VHSL Boys Basketball Brackets Here
See Full VHSL Basketball Brackets (Boys & Girls) on VHSL Site Here

Matthew Hatfield serves as Publisher for VirginiaPreps.com, part of the Rivals.com Network, and is a regular contributor to the ACC Sports Journal. Check out Hatfield’s Twitter page for more sports related updates, and you can also read his work in the Suffolk News Herald. To contact Matthew, please e-mail hatfieldsports2k4@yahoo.com, and don’t forget to listen to him weeknights from 6-7 PM on The 757 at 6 as well as every Saturday at 10 AM to Noon on ESPN Radio 94.1.