Clarke boys edge Wood 88-83 in OT

January 9, 2012
By Greg Brill
Special to The Winchester Star


WINCHESTER- Connor Shendow had spent much of Saturday's game trying to dart past James Wood's pressing defenses and set up his teammates for baskets.

When an extra period was needed and he found himself open on the wings to take 3-point shots, Shendow's role became more of a scorer. And the Clarke County senior did not disappoint.

Shendow buried a pair of open shots from behind the arc and the Eagles pulled out an 88-83 non-district boys' basketball win in overtime at Donald H. Shirley Gymnasium.

After scoring just six points in regulation, Shendow found himself in the right spots in overtime. He twice gave Clarke County the lead with 3-pointers (he made 3-of-4 in the game) and sealed the outcome with his two free throws with 7.4 seconds left.

"I struggled [finding my shot] for the most part, but I found my rhythm towards the end of the game and into overtime," Shendow said. "I mean, I've got to thank [teammate] Davey [Hardesty] for finding me for the 3s late in the game."

The Eagles (7-5) also defeated the Colonels (5-7) in overtime, 96-91, on Dec. 6 in Berryville. And much like the first time, Clarke County survived James Wood's full-court pressure and long-range shooting to come away with a win.

And while James Wood constantly threw out different combinations and used 12 players total on Saturday, the Eagles made the most of a seven-player rotation to keep up. In fact, Clarke County had several double-digit leads until James Wood made its strongest push of the game and rallied back in the fourth quarter to nearly steal a victory. But with Shendow scoring eight crucial points in overtime and James Wood losing its shooting touch (3-of-12 shooting in overtime), Clarke County gained the season sweep in the series.

"I'm proud of Connor and the effort the guys gave," Clarke County coach Brent Emmart said. "[James Wood's] depth hurt us and we lost our legs a bit at the end. We lost our legs with about three minutes left in the fourth, but then I guess we got our second wind and sucked it up and got it done in overtime."

Ethan Emmart had the hot hand most of the way and finished with a game-high 25 points (including four 3-pointers) to lead five Eagles in double-digits.

Clarke also had four other players score in double figures, including Davey Hardesty (20 points, 18 rebounds), Jared Ramey (14 points, 12 rebounds), Alex Sefton (11 points, seven rebounds), and Shendow (14 points).

"Games like this make us tougher," Brent Emmart said. "We've got a big week coming up, but at least our guys can enjoy their weekend. It's easier to enjoy the weekend after a win. You can go home and watch some [NFL] playoffs, enjoy your Sunday. Just not [dwell] on losing a ballgame."

The loss was the second in as many nights for James Wood, which fell to Northwestern District rival Sherando 107-93 on Friday. The Colonels had four players score at least 12 points against Clarke County, but James Wood coach Al Smith was left with concerns about his squad's lack of consistent free throw shooting and being able to stop the Eagles from getting to the basket.

The Colonels missed 12 free throws and allowed Clarke County to make 32 field goals and 17 free throws.

"We were very poor from the foul line and we again fouled way too much [26 fouls]," Smith said. "I just think they completely out-hustled us and killed us on the backboards. We just did not do the things that we're capable of doing.

"That's not to take anything away from Clarke County, because they played very hard. As they always do. I think the first time we played them, Coach Emmart, he characterized his team as blue-collar, hard-working guys. And that's exactly what they are."

James Wood concentrated much of its efforts again on knocking down 3-point shots, and the team made 13 of 38 (34.2 percent) from behind the arc.

The Colonels got a team-best 15 points from Michael Carter, 14 from Nick Foura before he fouled out with 1:07 left in the fourth period, 13 from Chad Potter, and 12 from Ryland Williams.

The Eagles were able to stay ahead most of the way by overcoming turnovers (30) with hard work around the basket and at the foul line. Sefton and Ramey both had success with second-chance points off rebounds, but each would get in foul trouble in the second half. To their credit, Sefton and Ramey each avoided a fifth foul and stayed in the game to keep the Eagles competitive for rebounds.

In fact, Clarke County would gather 56 rebounds and finish with a plus-17 in that category.

At other times, it was the hot hand of Ethan Emmart (14 first-half points) or the drives of Hardesty (who also shot 8-for-9 from the line) that provided what was needed.

Clarke County led 44-36 at the half and enjoyed several double-digit leads in the second half.

The Eagles were still ahead by nine after Hardesty made a pair of free throws with 5:59 left in regulation before the Colonels began to turn things around.

James Wood got points from five different players during a 12-3 run and tied the game at 71-71 when Brett Lewin made a layup with 3:42 left.

The Colonels moved ahead 76-73 on a drive by Carter with 1:41 left, but two free throws by Hardesty and one from Emmart tied the game heading into the final minute of regulation.

The Eagles got a chance to win it in regulation when Shendow drew an offensive foul on Carter with 31 seconds left. But a runner in the lane by Sefton with two seconds left was off, and James Wood's T. J. Bruce (13 rebounds) grabbed the miss to force overtime.

In the extra session, Shendow twice gave Clarke County the lead with 3-pointers. His second shot from long-range made it 86-83 with 1:02 left and the Eagles held on from there.

"They were wide-open looks," Smith said. "Defensively, I thought we were very poor tonight. Hardesty just dribbled up and down the court when he wanted to, Emmart was left open so many times it was unbelievable. Our defensive effort is just not there."

To survive such another close encounter with James Wood should help keep his team motivated for the task ahead, Shendow believes.

"It kind of went this way the first game [we played them]," Shendow said. "[Our] team - it's never give up. That's just what Coach Emmart has been preparing us for this long stretch ahead of us. This is just the first step in that direction."