Zoe Collins Rath
Mar 2, 2022
Petersburg's offense in the regional championship game was on full display because everyone was involved in their 41-40 victory over the Hopewell Blue Devils.
The first quarter saw 10 points from Chris Fields Jr. in jumpers and layups. Bernard Fuller Jr. stepped up when Fields was smothered with nice back door lays and hook shots. To make it 15-6 as the first quarter came to a close, CJ Claiborne knocked down a three.
But Hopewell made a run in the second quarter, which Massenburg prepared his players for. It was all about sustaining the run and keeping the Blue Devil's momentum at bay.
"We sustained the run and the game went back and forth," Head Coach Ryan Massenburg explained.
The second-quarter run saw Hopewell outscore the Wave 16 points to Petersburg’s nine. Even though the Wave had the lead, 26-22, it was a slim margin because Hopewell was making easy layups down the paint.
The Blue Devils also swarmed the ball and got a lot of possessions from Petersburg's mistakes with the ball. Fields would try and make his way into the lane but a Blue Devil would pick his pocket and Hopewell scored on fast breaks. But Petersburg stayed ahead with free throws from Kaymeign Lundy and putback layups from Tylik Lawerence.
"Tylik Lawerence played a big part in getting other people involved," said Massenburg.
With Hopewell having two or three players guard Fields, it left other players open to score. Fuller had eight points on the night from backdoor layups and from the free-throw line which was crucial when it came to controlling the game as Fields was no longer the first option.
"We've been talking to our other forward, Bernard Fuller, he's been telling me he needs to step up and when the moment presented itself, he did," said CJ Claiborne.
Fuller went to the free-throw line when he was fouled in the third quarter and Petersburg was down 31-30 to Hopewell. He sank both to help the Wave take the lead back, 32-31. Later, in the fourth quarter with the score at 37s, Fuller sank both.
"The other guys have to step up and score," said Massenburg.
But it did not stop with the other part of F^2. Jamari Garnett played a big role in extending the lead as both teams were trading points in the third quarter.
A Hopewell layup made it 33-32, just moments after Fuller sank his free throws for Petersburg to recapture the lead. Lawerence saw an easy opportunity to get an assist with Garnett streaking baseline for the Wave.
34-33 Petersburg.
Another Hopewell layup to take the lead by one. But the Wave ran the same play and this time, Garnett got the and-one to end the third quarter 37-35 and tac on his fifth point of the evening.
"They [Fuller and Garnett] played big minutes for us, so that was huge," Massenburg said.
The fourth quarter went back and forth with scoring and it looked like Hopewell got some momentum back after scoring a three-point shot to take the lead 40-39 with 2:31 left in the game. Instead of the offense doing all work, it all came down to what the defense would do to help get the ball back in the offense's hands.
"We just had to buckle down defensively and get stops and right there at the end we battled for the rebound," Massenburg explained.
The defense pulled out the scoring opportunities to the Wave as it came down to the wire. Fields went to the line on a foul with 1:11 left in the game and tied the game at 40s.
The defense got Petersburg the stops and with controlling the ball, they took their time to score as the clock wound down. After a few whistle blows and fouls, Claiborne journeyed to the free-throw line after a last-second shooting foul at the final buzzer.
The gym erupted because Hopewell's bench called for overtime as Petersburg's bench called for Claiborne to go to the line and shoot the two free throws. Since the shot went up and the foul occurred before the buzzer went off, Claiborne went to the line after some referee deliberation.
He missed the first free throw, the fifth miss of the night. But after gathering himself again, Claiborne walked to the line. To win the game, he had to make it.
"Knock it down or the decisions gonna be on my head," he said thinking about the moments before sinking it.
Petersburg won the game 41-40 with Claiborne scoring six points and everyone being involved on offense. Lawerence may have had two points but he was able to play strong team defense and get at least three assists to help his teammates. If Petersburg is going to continue to win on their way to the state championship, strong offensive performances from everyone is how they will do it.
"Playing team defense and moving the ball around," Claiborne concluded.