10 Best: VISAA D2 Championship
Let’s talk about how dominating the two boarding schools from outside of Charlottesville have been in basketball over the past few years. Since Cade Lemcke started coaching at Blue Ridge School, he has played in the state championship every year.…
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Continue ReadingLet’s talk about how dominating the two boarding schools from outside of Charlottesville have been in basketball over the past few years. Since Cade Lemcke started coaching at Blue Ridge School, he has played in the state championship every year. He spent one year as an assistant in the 2014-2015 season where they won the state championship. The next year, he took over as head coach and they have played in the state championship all four years, winning two of them. The Barons have been one of the best teams in the state over that period, going 103-23 according to Lemcke.
For Miller School, Head Coach Danny Manuel took over four seasons ago as well, and while the former Miller star as a player didn’t reach the championship that first year, he’s been to the state championship the last three seasons and each year they have played, you guessed it, Blue Ridge. The two teams aren’t just rivals because they’re located close to each other, are similar style boarding schools and they play in the same conference, they’re also rivals because they’re two of the most successful programs in the state at any level.
They met yet again in the state championship on Saturday, and it was one for the ages. Miller School came out focused and with a great game plan, and they were spectacular on the defensive end challenging Blue Ridge shots and holding them to one shot on most of their possessions. They headed into halftime in control, up 26-13.
However, things changed in the second half, and not just in the way the players played and the coaches coached. The officials started to call the game much closer, and down the stretch that played a huge role in the way the game played out. Blue Ridge HC Cade Lemcke made some great adjustments and his team responded in the third, holding Miller to just 7 points in the quarter and cutting the deficit to 33-28. The fourth quarter was an absolute slugfest, as both teams traded baskets and fought for loose balls like their life depended on it. Blue Ridge senior Chris Rogers hit a three with just over a minute left to cut the Miller lead to 42-39.
Things got a little crazy after that. Miller went to the line a total of 7 times in the last two minutes of the game, and left at least four points on the board by missing free throws. The Barons forced some turnovers and took advantage of their opportunities, and senior Savion Helm hit two free throws with just a couple seconds left on the clock to tie things up and send it into overtime.
Miller was already short handed in overtime with star senior DeArvae Heard fouling out, and in that overtime fellow senior Daryl Anderson fouled out. The Barons were able to get to the line early and make a few shots, and after that it was all about converting at the line down the stretch and they did just that. Blue Ridge was able to complete the crazy comeback and win 61-53, capturing their third state championship in five years and beating Miller for the second time in three years in the state championship.
Here’s a look at some of the top performers from the game.
MVP: Savion Helm | Blue Ridge 2019
In one of the oddest stat lines I’ve ever seen, Helm came off the bench to lead the team in scoring with 18 points, but he only had two field goals on the game. The 6’5″ wing hit a three-pointer in the first half, then had an exclamation point dunk toward the end, but in between there he went 13-for-14 from the line. So in other words, his first and last points came from the field, and all of the rest came from the free throw line. That’s incredible. More on him below.
Best Offensive Performer: Mike Gray | Blue Ridge 2021
While Blue Ridge has a very balanced team, sophomore Mike Gray has been their go-to guy for most of the season, and he gets the nod over Helm because he showed the whole repertoire to score it. The only thing he didn’t do well was shoot it from deep which is usually one of his best attributes, but he’s improved vastly in his ability to create shots off the bounce. He did so in transition, in the pick-and-roll and in isolation situations. He finished with 15 points, 5 rebounds and three assists, and also pitched in three steals on the defensive end.
Best Defensive Performer: Daryl Anderson | Miller School 2019
The Norfolk State commit is known mostly as a shot maker, but he’s a very underrated defender as well. He isn’t super quick or athletic, but he has great length on the wing at 6’6″ and he uses that length to deny scorers off the ball, get deflections and contest shots without fouling. He had two blocks, a steal and 7 rebounds on the game.
Best Guy off the Bench: Savion Helm | Blue Ridge 2019
The Barons have multiple guys that can come off the bench and score it, but Helm’s versatility at 6’5″ makes him a difference maker when he’s in the game. He can play and guard multiple positions, he’s athletic and bouncy around the rim and he can stretch the defense as well. He was in attack mode throughout the game and didn’t settle much, getting to the free throw line 14 times as mentioned before. Without Helm’s production, versatility and aggressiveness Blue Ridge would not have been able to make that comeback.
Best Intangibles: Chris Rogers | Blue Ridge 2019
You can say a lot about Rogers’ game, but over the past three or so years I’ve learned that this kid is one of the toughest and hardest working kids in the game. At 5’10” he isn’t the biggest, strongest or most athletic guy, but his will to win is second to none. After a forgettable first half in which he only scored two points, Rogers came up big down the stretch for BR scoring 11 points in the last ten minutes of the game including four free throws to help clinch it at the end. He finished with 13 points, had two steals and took a charge.
Best Under-the-Radar Performer: DeArvae Heard | Miller School 2019
Probably one of the biggest reasons that Miller School squandered the lead was Heard fouling out in the fourth quarter because he was phenomenal throughout the game. He used his strength to work on the glass on both ends, and despite being just 6’3″ he’s able to get his shots off and rebound against much bigger players. He showed touch in the midrange and around the basket as well, and he finished with 14 points on 5-for-10 shooting from the field and 4-for-4 shooting from the line and pitched in 8 rebounds before fouling out and missing the second half of the fourth quarter and overtime.
Best Underclassman: Quadir Pettaway | Miller School 2021
It’s great to see Pettaway back and I believe that he’ll have a chance to be one of the best guards in a loaded 2021 class with a lot of guard prospects. He’s a natural scorer who can fill it up from all three levels, he can create his shot with the ball in his hands and he’s able to move and locate to get shots off the ball. He can shoot it from deep and has a terrific floater in the midrange. He finished with a game high 20 points and will continue to get better in all aspects with time.
Best Available Prospect: Tariq Balogun | Miller School 2019
Heard, Helm and Rogers are all scholarship level players as well, but Balogun gets the nod for this category because at 6’9″ he has a ton of potential and is just scratching the surface. With that being said, he’s already a very good player. At 6’9″ he’s long and bouncy and does a good job around the rim on both ends. He can shoot the jumper out to the three-point line, and while he didn’t hit a three he did have a couple of nice finishes in the midrange. He finished with an impressive double-double of 11 points and 12 rebounds.
Best Blue Collar Performer: Andrew Nwaoko | Blue Ridge 2020
Every great team has a role player who steps up in some way other than scoring, and Nwaoko was that for BR this game. The 6’4″ junior came off the bench and had no problem doing the dirty work, hitting the glass immediately and bringing toughness to his group. He finished with 4 points and 12 rebounds, which can’t be understated how big it was for them.
Best Part of Environment: Rivalry in State Championship
There’s nothing quite like two teams that battle it out all season and end up playing each other for the state championship. We had it in the D1 championship between Episcopal and St. Stephen’s St. Agnes, and while that was great this one is a little different because these teams seem to meet every year for this title. Both coaches have done a great job getting the right talent and coaching them the right way, and it shows with the success each program has had. Maybe if we’re lucky we’ll get to see this matchup again in next year’s state championship.