H. Cross, TCS land in finals

The King Fieldhouse at Virginia Episcopal School was not a place for the faint of heart Friday night.

Timberlake Christian (2-2) and Holy Cross (2-2) both survived a pair of nail-biting games to post first-round wins in the Holiday Classic. The Tornadoes advanced with a 52-45 comeback win over the host Bishops (0-2), while John Laneve's Gaels needed two overtimes to dispose of LCA (2-4) in a foul-plagued game, 70-67.

"I'm sure it was exciting to watch from (the stands)," Laneve said.

Laneve's team finished the game with just one of his starters remaining because of fouls, while Donnie Norman's Bulldogs lost three starters to fouls by the end of the game.

Both teams had their opportunities to win the game in regulation. The Gaels' Luke Lesniak (18 points) missed a one-and-one with 7 seconds remaining and the score tied at 56. Then LCA's Jason Brown missed a 3-pointer and Trent Richardson's follow shot from eight feet rimmed out.

The Bulldogs had the golden opportunity in the first overtime. Lesniak stole the ball at midcourt, as he began his drive for the basket an LCA player called a timeout and the officials awarded the timeout to the Bulldogs and called Lesniak for a technical foul when he protested the call.

"I didn't think we were dead in the water, but I could just visualize those points costing us the game," said Laneve, who didn't realize until after the game that the technical was on Lesniak and not himself for running onto the court.

Richardson, who led all scorers with 25 points, canned both of the technical free throws and Lesniak fouled out with 40 seconds left and his team trailing 59-57. But Kent Edwards, who became Holy Cross' go-to guy once Lesniak and Bryan Lightner (10 points) fouled out, hit a pair of free throws with 29 seconds left to tie it. Richardson hit two free throws with 23 seconds to play, but Edwards answered again with a hoop to force a second extra period with 12 seconds left.

"I told them that we had to put it away right there," said LCA coach Donnie Norman, referring to the technical free throws and the subsequent possession out of bounds. "We had the two point lead after the technicals, but then we just petered out. But there is still no excuse."

In the second overtime, Holy Cross' Daniel Mock, who had scored just 2 points in regulation and the first overtime, canned four straight free throws as the Gaels built a 70-63 lead with 1:30 to play and put the game away.

"It was a big surprise that the young kids didn't fall apart," Laneve said. "I'm proud of them. We've been on (Mock) about his foul shooting and he came through at the line, and (Edwards) has gotten really mature and he's just getting better. He didn't mind taking over when all our other starters fouled out."

The Gaels will face Timberlake Christian in tonight's 8 p.m. final, which matches two teams that have never won the Holiday Classic. The Tornadoes didn't have all the overtimes and hyperventilations the nightcap provided, but it was plenty exciting for TCS coach Charlie Williams.

Brian Fitzgerald, held scoreless in the first half, scored 15 points to rally Timberlake from a 30-21 halftime deficit. The Tornadoes outscored Virginia Episcopal 15-4 in the third period and Fitzgerald dealt the Bishops a serious blow when he banked home a 3-pointer from about 22 feet as the buzzer sounded ending the third quarter.

"That shot really pumped us up," Williams said. "We seemed to turn up our defense and our overall play really smoothed out."

VES coach Bob Leake asked Williams after the game what he put in his water bottles at halftime. Maybe Williams also tampered with the Bishops' refreshments as well.

After scorching the nets and racing to a 16-7 first-quarter lead, the Bishops made several costly turnovers that led to some easy Timberlake baskets. "Perhaps we became a bit overconfident after that fast start," Leake said. "We told them that good shooting to get TCS back in it, and they were obviously hungry for the win. It seemed the second half everything went away. We were rocked back on our heels from the get-go of the second half and we never recovered."

Williams seemed even more satisfied because his team survived the first round without starting guard Jon Phillips, who was out with a sprained ankle. Ryan Spear, whose brother Jason scored 14 for TCS, filled in for Phillips with 9 points.

"We're just tickled pink to win this game and get in the finals," Williams said. "To beat that team without our best player makes this a great win as far as I'm concerned."

By Jeff Motley, Staff writer
The News & Advance