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Stallions Edge Norview, Move to 15-4

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style='font-size:9.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";
background:yellow;mso-highlight:yellow'>Final - - #8 Green Run 55, Norview 50:
"Verdana","sans-serif"'>Playing their final home game of the regular season on
Wednesday night, the Green Run Stallions gave their fans something to cheer about
by gutting out a 55-50 win over the visiting Norview Pilots in a 5A-South
Conference 9 matchup.
"Verdana","sans-serif"'>With the victory, Green Run moved a step closer towards
securing the #2 seed for the conference tournament that gets underway on
February 14th. After seeing a 16-point
lead in the second quarter evaporate late in the third quarter, the Stallions
closed it out with a 21-point fourth period that included 7-of-11 shooting from
the foul line and a pair of critical three-pointers.
"Verdana","sans-serif"'>"I'm positive about the win," said a relieved Green Run
Head Basketball Coach Kenneth Harris afterwards.
style=> "I told them that Norview as long as they can
shoot 3's and they press, they're going to be in the game because we knew they
would attack us and get aggressive. They're
not going to quit. Our goal was to slow
them down and we didn't want to speed them up."
"Verdana","sans-serif"'>Out of the gate, Green Run came out hot by making 8-of-18
from the field and saw six different players score with seniors
style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'>Tyler Blount and
normal'>Shaun James, an East Carolina football signee, scoring four apiece
in the opening quarter. Blount went on
to score a game-high 19 points, despite a somewhat off night shooting the ball
for him - 6-of-21 from the field.
"Verdana","sans-serif"'>Norview was dealt a big blow in the second quarter when
sophomore Jaylen
style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'> Frazier, one of their starters and top
scorers, was ejected for throwing an elbow.
The Stallions' advantage swelled to 25-9 on a Blount there-pointer, but
Norview closed the half with five straight points to pull within 11 at the
half.
"Verdana","sans-serif"'>The Pilots had some things go their way in the
statistics as their bench outscored Green Run's 29-2, thanks in large part to
class=SpellE>Damion
style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'> Madison (14 points) and
class=SpellE>Daevon
style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'> Brown, who recorded a double-double
with 11 points and 15 rebounds. Brown pulled
down 10 offensive boards. In addition,
Norview committed only six turnovers for the game and just one over the final
24 minutes compared to 16 turnovers by Green Run with 11 of them coming in the
second half.
"Verdana","sans-serif"'>"They tried to steal it from us at the end, but we just
tightened up and got it done on the defensive end when we needed to," said
Green Run senior Edward Gordon, who
rose to the occasion in the fourth quarter with seven of his 15 points.
"Verdana","sans-serif"'>Norview, which fell to 12-6 overall and 5-4 in
conference play, had trouble at the free-throw line.
style=> At one point, they were 6-of-16 at the
charity stripe and didn't find a great outside shooting rhythm, going 4-for-24
from three-point land. It marked their
second loss of the season to Green Run, losing to the Stallions at home 59-51
in January.
"Verdana","sans-serif"'>Now 15-4 overall and 7-2 in conference play, Green Run
is now five victories away from their first 20-win campaign since 1995-96 when former
Super Bowl Champion Plaxico Burress
starred for the Stallions. What will it
take for them to get there and make noise in the postseason?
"Verdana","sans-serif"'>"Boxing out, defensive and offensive rebounding,
half-court defense, being able to finish lay-ups and free-throws," Gordon
noted. "Those are the main things we
have to work on to be successful. We're
on a winning streak now and as long as we do those things we're supposed to, I
think we'll be alright."
"Verdana","sans-serif"'> 
style='font-size:9.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";
background:yellow;mso-highlight:yellow'>Player of the Game:
style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'>
115%;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif"'>
Green Run SG Edward Gordon - -
line-height:115%;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif"'>The 6-foot-4 senior shooting
guard shot an efficient 7-of-9 from the field, including a perfect 3-for-3 in
the game's final quarter on his way to providing 15 points and much-needed
offensive punch down the stretch.
"Verdana","sans-serif"'>As the season has progressed, he's developed into a
reliable complementary option at the offensive end to their leading scorers
Blount and Jamaal Matin.
"Verdana","sans-serif"'>"I feel as a role player I should be able to hit open
shots, so I just work on it in practice," Gordon said.
style=> "I was feeding off my teammates' energy and
thought the defense was worried about our big two (Tyler and Jamaal) and knew I
had to step up."
"Verdana","sans-serif"'>Gordon's confidence has been up in the past month, and
as a result, so too have his minutes.
"Verdana","sans-serif"'>"I believe since Kempsville,
Edward Gordon has been playing excellent ball, averaging about 13-14 points over
our last five or six games," remarked Harris.
"He's really stepping up."
"Verdana","sans-serif"'>In the game vs. Kempsville that
Coach Harris references, Gordon scored 20 of his 22 points in the first half
alone and collected eight rebounds.
"Verdana","sans-serif"'> 
style='font-size:9.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";
background:yellow;mso-highlight:yellow'>Keys to Victory:
style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'>
115%;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif"'>
style='font-size:9.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif"'>#1
- - Transition Game:
style='font-size:9.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif"'>What
allowed Green Run to build a big lead was how they started off with their
fast-break attack. The Stallions scored
on several lay-ups, pushed the pace and weren't shy at all about driving it to
the hole.
"Verdana","sans-serif"'> "We've been
working at it and I think we're going to get better," Harris said of the team's
transition game. "We really looked good
at the beginning, defensively and offensively.
It caught them by surprise how we were finishing.
style=> As long as Norview was 11 points down, I told
them they're two three-pointers away from being in the ballgame."
"Verdana","sans-serif"'>Out of their first 18 field goal attempts, Green Run
shot 16 of those shots inside the three-point arc.
style=> They entered the second quarter with a 16-5
lead.
style='font-size:9.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif"'>
#2 - - Defend & Hit the Glass:
style='font-size:9.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif"'>Holding
Norview to just five points in a quarter and 14 for a half is a great job considering
that the Pilots were averaging 68.7 points per game coming into Wednesday's
contest. In fact, their 50 for the game
marked the team's second lowest output of the year, only slightly more than the
48 they scored on Granby in a win. Their
third lowest total was 51, also in a loss to Green Run.
"Verdana","sans-serif"'>Defense is Green Run's forte.
style=> No team in all of Group 5A in the state is
giving up fewer points per game than their 43.4PPG allowed.
style=>
"Verdana","sans-serif"'>"The first half, I felt we really stepped up
defensively. The second half, we had
some miscues, but every possession is important and our guys rebounded well
down the stretch," Harris stated.
"Verdana","sans-serif"'>Rebounding certainly plays a large part in their
defensive success, spearheaded by Matin.
style=> A versatile 6-foot-4 senior wing who's
capable of playing all five positions on the floor, Matin
grabbed a game-high 17 rebounds, eight in the last eight minutes of the game.
"Verdana","sans-serif"'>"That's the second game in a row he's had double-digit
rebounds for us. He's a big utility
player for us," Harris admitted. "We
definitely have to work on rebounding more and boxing out, but when you have a
player like Jamaal who's determined that he's not going to let us lose, he'll
get the rebound and come from half-court to get a rebound if he has to."
"Verdana","sans-serif"'>
#3 - - Composure Late:
style=> Green Run's experienced shined through in
the closing minutes against a Pilots team full of underclassmen that are key
contributors. After all, the Stallions
have 10 seniors on the roster, four in the starting lineup.
"Verdana","sans-serif"'>Harris is hopeful that his upperclassmen make the most
of their last postseason journey before some of them head off to the next
level.
"Verdana","sans-serif"'>"The good thing about our kids is the senior
leadership. Two years ago, we would've
folded up," he admitted. "But I think
our seniors showed composure."
style='font-size:9.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif"'> 
style='font-size:9.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif"'>
href="http://vmedia.rivals.com/uploads/914/1513371.WMA">
none;text-underline:none'>Postgame Audio with Green Run Coach Kenneth Harris
style='font-size:9.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif"'>
Final Stats:
style='font-size:9.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif"'>Green
Run Stallions 55:
style='font-size:9.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif"'>
style=> (15-4; 7-2)
Tyler Blount - - 19Pts. 6-21FG, 3-9 3's, 4-7FT, 5Reb.
Edward Gordon - - 15Pts. 7-9FG, 5Reb.
Sterling Carrington - - 7Pts. 3-5FG, 7Reb.
Jamaal Matin - - 6Pts. 3-7FG, 17Reb. 5Ast
class=GramE>.
Shaun James - - 6Pts. 2-6FG, 2-2FT, 3Reb.
style='font-size:9.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif"'>Norview
Pilots 50:
style='font-size:9.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif"'>
style=> (12-6; 5-4)
Damion Madison - - 14Pts. 5-17FG, 1-5 3's, 3-6FT,
4Stl.
Daevon Brown - - 11Pts. 5-14FG, 15Reb. (10Off.), 2Stl
class=GramE>.
Greg Heckstall - - 11Pts. 4-14FG, 1-9 3's, 5Reb.
Willie White - - 7Pts. 2-7FG, 2-5 3's, 2Stl.
style='font-size:9.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif"'> 
style='mso-bidi-font-style:normal'>
115%;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";text-decoration:none;text-underline:
none'>Matthew Hatfield
style='font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>
serves as State Basketball Analyst for
href="http://www.virginiapreps.com">
style='font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";
text-decoration:none;text-underline:none'>VirginiaPreps.com
style='mso-bidi-font-style:normal'>
115%;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>, part of the Rivals.com
Network. Check out
href="http://www.twitter.com/hatfieldsports">
normal'>
text-decoration:none;text-underline:none'>Hatfield's Twitter page
style='mso-bidi-font-style:normal'>
115%;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'> for more sports related updates,
and you can also read his work in the
href="http://www.suffolknewsherald.com">
style='font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";
text-decoration:none;text-underline:none'>Suffolk News Herald
style='mso-bidi-font-style:normal'>
115%;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>.
To contact Matthew, please e-mail
href="mailto:hatfieldsports2k4@yahoo.com">
style='font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";
text-decoration:none;text-underline:none'>hatfieldsports2k4@yahoo.com
style='mso-bidi-font-style:normal'>
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style='mso-bidi-font-style:normal'>
115%;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'>, plus watch him on the
href="http://www.cox11.com">
style='font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";
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