Explosive third-quarter play is nothing new for Greater Beckley Christian. Friday night, sectional rival Mount View got to see the explosion first hand.
Leading by four points at the break, the Crusaders erupted for 31 points in the third quarter to roll past the Golden Knights 67-45 on Senior Night.
Playing just their second game in over three weeks, Greater Beckley head coach Justin Arvon was not shocked by the slow start.
“Two different teams from the first half to the third quarter. We haven’t played much and it’s hard to have any type of offensive rhythm when you don’t play much,” Arvon said. “We were able to hold them to 20 in the first half, which is what you have to do when you can’t convert on the offensive end.”
The visitors held a five-point lead in the first quarter, but when the halftime horn sounded, the Crusaders held a 24-20 advantage.
“Coming in we knew that Mount View was an aggressive team. They bring a lot of energy and they are a bunch of athletic players that come to play each and every night. They will always leave it out on the floor,” Kaden Smallwood said. “It’s a dogfight sometimes because we don’t come out and match their energy.”
Even though the Golden Knights only had 20 points at halftime, the Crusaders were not fully happy with that number.
“We talked about execution on the offensive end, but we also harped on our defensive effort. I know we only gave up 20, but we weren’t creating any turnovers,” Arvon said. “When we create turnovers, we can get out on the break. We were also giving up too many second shots. We harped on execution, defensive intensity and defensive rebounds.”
The halftime speech clearly worked.
A basket from Sean-David Kadjo and a long ball from Kendrick Wilson pushed the lead to nine points before Tony Bailey scored for Mount View.
John Rose then scored to restore that nine-point advantage which was followed by a big-time play from Smallwood.
An outlet pass from Sherlock Padmore found Smallwood streaking down the floor. The senior all-stater scored through contact for the first double-digit lead of the game.
“We gave up more points than we should have in the first half. We let them get in the lane a lot more than we should ever allow,” Smallwood said. “I think we controlled that better in the third quarter. Then on the offensive end we were able to get out and go.”
Leading by 13, Greater Beckley outscored Mount View 12-2 over the final 1:36 of the quarter for a 55-32 lead. The run included three stickbacks from senior Azel Carmichael.
“We have huge offensive lulls where we are not moving and we are not getting quality shots. We turn the ball over because we try and play too much one-on-one,” Mount View head coach Gary Brown said. “We will play one half where we will move and cut and get good shots. Then we will go to the next half and go like five minutes without scoring. You can’t do that and beat quality teams. We also gave up too many run outs. Those type of things against a good team will get you a blowout.”
Arvon equated the explosive third quarters with his team’s continued defensive intensity.
“A lot of it is wear and tear on the opponent. We like to get up and down and play pressure defense. In high school, there are a few teams that can handle that,” Arvon said. “There are a lot that can handle it for a quarter or two. Not many can handle it for four. So, that is our mindset. We have nine guys we can put in there. I think that is part of the key to our runs.”
The senior guard tandem of Smallwood and Rose played a huge part in Friday’s Senior Night triumph.
“Kaden played really well. I thought he should have gone to the line more tonight, but the whistles just weren’t there for him. He led us tonight and played really well. He was scoring when we couldn’t,” Arvon said. “Tonight is the way we need John to play every single game. He was all over the place and that is the type of player that he can be for us.”
Tony Bailey and Justin Haggerty led the Golden Knights with 11 points apiece.
“We have been doing that all year. It is amazing that we can look really good and then look really bad,” Brown said. “If we can get to that point of playing four quarters of looking really good, we will have a good opportunity to do something.”
Greater Beckley hosts Mercer Christian Saturday, while Mount View will travel to Tazewell, Va. for a battle with the Bulldogs.
MV: 12 8 12 13 – 45
GBC: 12 12 31 12 – 67
Mount View
Tony Bailey 11, Justin Haggerty 11, Jason Haggerty 5, Brendon Rotenberry 8, Malaki Bishop 2, T.J. Bell 8. Totals: 20 3-4 45.
Greater Beckley
Kaden Smallwood 16, John Rose 14, Sherlock Padmore 7, Kendrick Wilson 13, Sean-David Kadjo 2, Michael Judy 2, Miko Robinson 4, Azel Carmichael 9. Totals: 29 4-10 67.
3-pointers – MV: 2 (Ju. Haggerty, Ja. Haggerty); GBC: 5 (Smallwood 3, Rose, Wilson).
