Home > Forums

[Lynn Burke]

PA too much for Hampton

By Jason Jordan | jjordan@dailypress.com

VIRGINIA BEACH – Hampton High girls basketball coach David Six never said that the Crabbers were shoo-ins to repeat as Group AAA state champs. He never thought that the Crabbers were going to breeze through the Peninsula District, and he certainly didn’t buy into the hype that the Crabbers were the No. 4 team in the country, as Student Sports’ preseason poll suggested.

In fact, Six called all of those preseason accolades “lofty.”

When the Crabbers ran into Princess Anne, the proven No. 1 team in the state, on Tuesday in the Eastern Region quarterfinals, it was easy to understand why.

The Cavs rolled the Crabbers 60-44 at Princess Anne.

Cavs’ guard Raven Harris, the Beach District Player of the Year, led the Cavs (27-0) with 22 points, while Elizabeth Williams, a forward, added 12 points, 10 rebounds and eight blocks in the win.

Crabbers’ guard Tiffany Davis, the PD Co-Player of the Year, led Hampton (21-6) with 20 points and six rebounds.

Six said the Crabber slose three key seniors form last year's team: center Evelyn Lewis, a key reserve for Penn State; guard Raychele payne, who starts at Norfolk State; and a kid (Kelley London) who definitely could’ve played college basketball if she wanted to. I don’t know how many teams could do that off of a state championship team and come back and be No. 4 in the nation.”

The Crabbers certainly didn’t look like it early.

Princess Anne forwards Kahealani Vick and Williams snatched five offensive rebounds in the first quarter to give the Cavs an 11-6 lead early.

Hampton fought back in the second, but even after Davis’ running 3-pointer beat the halftime horn, the Crabbers trailed 26-20.

The Cavs went to a 2-1-2 halfcourt trap set in the second half and also trapped off of every Crabbers’ rebound. That forced Hampton to commit uncharacteristic turnovers and kept the Cavs’ lead comfortable. And in the rare event that the Crabbers attacked the zone, Williams was in the paint erasing shots.

“We saw on tape that the zone trap kind of threw them off,” Harris said. “We figured if someone else could do it, we could do it better.”

Up 52-37 with 2:31 left in the game, Tonya Clark dribbled down in transition and threw an alley-oop to Vick, who finished with a layup.

That seemed to halt Hampton’s comeback hopes.

“We knew all about them and how they played,” Harris said. “I knew that they didn’t have as good a record as they did last year, but I knew they were a good team. I knew they were capable. We knew that if we could take them out, by them being the powerhouse, it would give us a lot more confidence.”

Despite the lopsided loss, Six said that the Crabbers, who return their top players, have what it takes to be contenders next season.

“We had some young players who just needed a year,” Six said. “They just weren’t seasoned yet, but they’ll be alright next year.”

PRINCESS ANNE 60, HAMPTON 44
HAMPTON (21-6): Davis 20, Smith 13, Bennett 8, Hicks 2, Sears 1. Totals 16 8-14 44.
PRINCESS ANNE (27-0): Harris 22, Gorham 2, Clark 12, Vick 12, Williams 10, Braxton 2. Totals 22 15-21 60.
Hampton 6 14 12 12 — 44
Princess Anne 11 15 14 20 — 60
3-point goals — Hampton (Smith 2, Davis 2), Princess Anne 1 (Harris). Total fouls — Hampton 19, Princess Anne 14.

[The Educator]

Evelyn Lewis has 21 games played, zero starts. That doesn't qualify as a starter does it? Coaches and/or newspapers shouldn't exaggerate like that!!

[twiceasnice757]

Originally Posted by JRob

Evelyn Lewis has 21 games played, zero starts. That doesn't qualify as a starter does it? Coaches shouldn't exaggerate like that!!

I hear you JRob, but someone had their comments misconstrued, be it the DP or Coach Six. Because in the actual paper, Six is quoted as saying "We lost 3 seniors, one of which Evelyn Lewis, a key reserve at Penn State." But in reading the article on the net, it does say a starter at Penn State, you'd think the articles would be identical.

[Lynn Burke]

Originally Posted by twiceasnice757

I hear you JRob, but someone had their comments misconstrued, be it the DP or Coach Six. Because in the actual paper, Six is quoted as saying "We lost 3 seniors, one of which Evelyn Lewis, a key reserve at Penn State." But in reading the article on the net, it does say a starter at Penn State, you'd think the articles would be identical.

I've edited the story on the site here to reflect how we edited the story that's in the paper.

[SIGMASAM757]

Thank You