Petersburg puts on a show, advances to state final

It was over quickly and without remedy.

It wasn’t that the Western Albemarle Warriors didn’t give Petersburg their absolute best effort, though, in their VHSL, Class 3 semifinal matchup Friday night in the William W. Lawson Jr. Gymnasium.

It wasn’t that the visitors from Charlottesville didn’t compete with heart and soul and all the courage they could muster, even to the extent of diving onto the floor after a 50-50 ball in the closing minute.

It was just that Coach Ty White’s guys were way too quick, too strong, too tall, too physical, and too focused on living their credo, Our Turn Now, to squander the opportunity to take their talents to the Siegel Center in pursuit of the program’s first state championship since Moses Malone led the Crimson Wave to victory in 1973 and 1974.

Before a boisterous, passionate, partisan capacity (1,500-plus) crowd, Petersburg’s all-star cast bolted to an 18-8 first quarter lead, increased its advantage to 32-15 by halftime, then rode a 26-7 third quarter to a 75-35 victory.

The Wave’s title game foe is Lake Taylor, which dispatched Liberty Christian 61-45 Friday in the other semifinal.

They square off at 6:30 p.m., March 14 in the final game of the three-day VHSL tournament.

“From the day I was hired, I wanted our city to know that it’s our turn now,” said White, a 1998 Petersburg graduate who led John Marshall to seven state championships in 15 seasons before returning to his alma mater this year.

“I’m excited for the opportunity to lead these young men in the state championship game. From Day 1, we talked about what could happen. It hasn’t been done in 52 years. Eyes haven’t seen. Ears haven’t heard what’s about to happen for this program, for this city.”

Kelvin Anderson, a 6-2 sophomore guard, put the Wave (21-4) on the fast track to victory by hitting three long 3-pointers from three different spots on the perimeter in the first quarter.

In the second, two strikes from behind the arc by Cam Claiborne and a staunch defensive effort that forced six turnovers put to rest any hope of a comeback by Western (22-5).

“Our calling card is defense,” White said. “We compete on every possession. That’s been our staple as a program this year.”

Though they had the game well in hand, the Wave never relented, remained focused on the task at hand, and never allowed the runaway to become sloppy.

“In practice, we work on tapping people out,” said Anderson, who finished with 12 points. “We always have that second gear to keep pushing.”

The Petersburg defense, mostly man-to-man with some zone looks at times, prevented the Warriors from finding their offensive rhythm by contesting every pass and field goal attempt.

In fact, after they won the opening tap, they needed a full minute to take their first shot, which fell awry and resulted in a defensive rebound which became an offensive opportunity for the Wave.

The scenario would repeat itself numerous times through the frenetically contested 32 minutes. 

In the first half, the Warriors hit just 6-of-19 shots from the field. All told, they shot just 13-for-48. 

“We start at the defensive end,” Anderson said. “That’s where we get ourselves going. Everybody has a defensive mindset. We know the offense is going to come, so we’re going to be scrappy and play all-around good defense.

“We trust our coaches to put us in the right position defensively, and we just go out there and follow (their instructions).”

The Wave’s third quarter blitz put the game away. 

The clincher was a 15-0 run over four minutes sparked by 3-pointers by Anderson, Claiborne, Ladarius Givan, and King Bacot.

All came after the Wave limited the Warriors to a single rushed shot, then grabbed the rebound and hurtled downcourt.

“As a team, we trust each other to run our lanes,” said Nyland Robinson, a 6-5 senior forward. “We trust everybody to rebound. That speeds the other team up and lets us keep the pressure on.”

While the Petersburg defense kept Western at bay, White’s guys shot 25-for-53 including 14-for-30 from behind the arc.

They also outrebounded Western 46-19, forced 15 turnovers, committed just three, and dealt 14 team assists.

Oklahoma State signee Latrell Allmond, a 6-8 force, scored 22 points, collected 13 rebounds, and blocked five shots.

Bacot, a 6-3 freshman, scored 13 points, collected six rebounds, and dealt six assists.  Anderson added 12 points and Claiborne 11. Givan, a 6-8 senior forward, scored just six points but collected 12 rebounds and recorded three steals.

“Tomorrow, it’s back in the gym,” said Robinson. “We’ll do as much as we can to get better and better.”

The Wave, you see, have not yet reached the mountaintop.

“We were fortunate enough that tonight was our night,” White said. “Our guys stayed motivated because we have some goals we’re trying to accomplish.

“The beauty of this team is that we still haven’t played our best basketball. We’re actually getting better. We’re still putting some things together. I’m excited to put that final piece together to be the best version of us. We’re going to do everything we can to represent our school and our city the best way we can.”