Playoff upsets prevail all over Tidewater; Bethel hot entering regional tournament
By Phillip Hines
MaxPreps.com
Boy's basketball has been anything but predictable for area teams this season.
The Beach District witnessed a strange turn of events, with the four lower seeds all winning their first-round playoff games; No. 8 Green Run eventually won the tournament in style with a 59-52 win over seventh-seeded Landstown.
Out in the Eastern District, it took two overtimes for Norcom to beat Churchland.
The Lafayette Rams entered the Bay Rivers District tournament as a fifth seed and concluded the district playoffs with a 67-52 stomping of the Poquoson Islanders.
Chris Astorga's 33 points led Cape Henry to a 75-69, overtime upset victory against the top-seeded Hampton Roads Navigators, a team that has dominated the Tidewater Conference of Independent Schools this year.
Kings Fork has turned its season around and begins the Eastern Region tournament with momentum as it stormed its way to the school's first-ever district tournament title.
Consistency is key, and the Bethel Bruins, out of the Peninsula District, have achieved just that all season. With only one loss on the season, Bethel (24-1) looks to be a favorite entering the regional tournament.
The Bruins count on guard Jontel Evans, who scored 24 points in the district championship, forward Bill Weaver, and guards Tre Lee and Paul Meredith to produce quality minutes on the floor. Bethel even has some experience with playing teams on the Southside. The Bruins won their bracket in the first Ronald Curry Christmas Classic this season, where they handled with ease the Deep Creek Hornets, a team that is highly touted out of the Southeastern District.
Although Bethel has the best record entering the AAA Eastern Region tournament, there is no telling who will end up on top, but the district tournaments should serve as an indicator that anything is possible.
Bay Rivers (AA)
The fifth-seeded Lafayette Rams beat the Poquoson Islanders, 67-52, to win the Bay Rivers District tournament and keep their season alive, advancing to the Region I tournament.
Dominique Brown, who scored a game-high 20 points, and Cedric Jones, who registered 17 rebounds, 12 points and four blocked shots, led Lafayette. The Rams (18-7) have a home game against Chancellor Monday night. High scorers for Poquoson were Eric Nixon with 17 points and Gene Efrid with 16 points. Tabb, which won the regular season, has a home game Monday against Park View. Poquoson plays Courtland on the road Monday.
Peninsula District (AAA)
Ranked the top team in Tidewater by Inside Sports, No. 1 Bethel beat No. 2 Warwick, 60-47, in the Peninsula District championship game Friday night at Heritage High School in Newport News.
Bethel's Jontel Evans was the highlight of the night with 24 points, complemented by Bill Weaver, who scored 11 points. Guard Eric Dubose led the Raiders (20-4) by scoring 15 points.
Bethel faces off against Southeastern District opponent Oscar Smith in the Eastern Region tournament. The Raiders are paired up against Deep Creek, a good Southeastern District team that has kept pace with state contender Nansemond River. Southeastern District tournament champions Kings Fork will challenge the Denbigh Patriots, and Kecoughtan will play Nansemond River in a battle of the Warriors.
Southeastern (AAA)
The district championship went through a Suffolk school. Not only did Kings Fork win the tournament championship in Suffolk, it did so on its home court.
The Bulldogs upset Nansemond River on Friday night, 60-40, for the district title, earning the right to a home game Monday against the Denbigh Patriots of the Peninsula District. The Bulldog's Jamar Wertz led all scorers with 21 points and Jaquon Parker added 17 for Kings Fork. Andre Jones led the Warriors with 17 points.
Deep Creek, which lost to Kings Fork in the semifinals, will play the Warwick Raiders, runners up of the Peninsula District tournament. Oscar Smith travels to Bethel and regular-season champion Nansemond River hosts a tough Kecoughtan team, led by Peninsula District Player-of-the-Year Ricardo Ratliffe.
Eastern District (AAA)
This district is just as unpredictable as the Beach may be. In a wild championship game, Norcom (16-10) came out on top, defeating Churchland (17-7), 57-54, for the Eastern District tournament championship in double overtime.
Booker T. Washington, Maury, Norcom and Churchland all earned bids to the Eastern Region tournament. The region tournament semifinals and final are being played at Churchland High School in Portsmouth, Virginia.
Beach (AAA)
The Beach District was the most lopsided tournament in the area this year. All four of the top-seeded teams lost their first-round games. The eight-seeded Green Run Stallions completed the low-seed surprise, beating the seventh-seeded Landstown Eagles, 69-62, for the district tournament title.
Green Run's playoff heroics have landed it a home game against the Eastern District's Churchland Truckers, while Landstown will travel to another Eastern District opponent, Norcom. Even after losing in the district tournament quarterfinals, Bayside earned a bid and plays Maury of the Eastern District.
Private
Cape Henry Collegiate stunned the Hampton Roads Navigators, winning 75-69 in overtime behind Chris Astorga's 33 points. Atlantic Shores beat Stonebridge, 64-55, in the Metro Conference tournament final. Tabernacle Baptist beat Fairfax Christian, 46-37, clinching the ODAC tournament championship.
Phillip Hines, the editor of the Tidewater Sports Report, covers Southeastern Virginia for MaxPreps. He may be reached at editor@tidewatersportsreport.com.
