Holy Cross, Va. Episcopal in Classic final

Holy Cross coach John Laneve had the flu heading into his school's Holiday Classic, but it didn't slow the Gaels down. Holy Cross opened the tournament with a 79-51 win over Timberlake Christian in first-round play at the Holy Cross gym Friday night, jumping to an 18-7 lead behind long-range shooting from 6-foot-4 forward Kevin Brady, who nailed six three-pointers and finished with 28 points. "He played well," Laneve said. "He looked good at the three-point line." Holy Cross stretched the lead to 48-28 on a turnaround jumper by junior guard Vernon Patterson and led 54-35 through three quarters. Timberlake senior center Doug Allen scored 8 of his game-high 18 points in the first half to keep pace early, but the Tornadoes (1-5) couldn't close the gap as Holy Cross (3-1) advanced to face Virginia Episcopal School in Saturday's championship.

VES, 2-1, trounced Lynchburg Christian Academy, 74-60, in the tournament's other first-round game, though the win came a night after the Bishops themselves had lost 75-69 to Fork Union Military Academy. Sophomore center Chad Carter, who'd led FUMA at the half only to see that game slip away, came out against LCA determined to finish it early, scoring 24 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. "We just had to get off the loss," Carter said. "You just have to pick yourself up and come back strong." Senior forward Matt O'Brien added 14 points and 14 rebounds. "Everyone was kind of bitter about the defeat last night," O'Brien said. "We just came out ready to play early on."

VES' aggressive zone defense stifled the LCA attack, turning misplaced passes into fast breaks led by 6-foot-2 senior shooting guard Tuffy Taylor, who scored 13 points and set up several other transition baskets. "We wanted to prove we're one of the better teams in the prep league," Taylor said. "We wanted to push it up the court, getting pressure defense." Taylor's play and Carter's continued presence inside helped VES jump to a 40-19 first-half lead before settling for a 42-25 edge at intermission. LCA forward Gabe Lyons, who tied Jamey Elder for team high-scoring honors with 18, scored six straight points late in the half to cut into the lead, and VES' advantage grew to 23 points in the third quarter before settling at 63-43 heading into the fourth — a margin that didn't sit well with VES coach Bob Leake. "O'Brien had some nice little shots and so did Carter — when we needed a basket he came through," Leake said. "(But) we're up by 20 points and they're shooting free throws, that's just playing sloppy."

By Steve Heisler, Staff writer
The News & Advance