Belvoir men, women heat up gym with Friday victories
By Tamika Matthews
Sports editor
Photo by Marny Malin
Chris Dilworth goes for the layup in Friday’s game against Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall. The Eagles won the game, 92-53.
After the Blizzard of 2010 wreaked havoc across the National Capital Region, the post basketball teams dug their way out to restart the season with a retooled schedule. Friday games were added to the lineup to make up for those missed during the storm.
The Lady Eagles and Eagles welcomed Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall to Graves Fitness Center for their first game since early February, where both home teams proceeded to easily knock off the competition.
The women defeated the Lady Generals, 76-48, while the men followed their lead with a 92-53 victory over Myer.
Women control pace with scoring
JBMHH jumped out to a 3-0 advantage, which ended quickly after Nicole Pittman went on a scoring tear for six of Belvoir’s first 10 points.
Still, the Lady Generals hung around long enough to tie the score at 15 at the first half’s midway point.
The Lady Eagles opened a slight lead at 21-15. Most notable, however, was Belvoir’s defensive tactics that kept Myer from scoring for three minutes. The drought allowed Belvoir to build a 39-25 lead by halftime.
Myer fired back early in the game’s final period, pulling within six points and closing the deficit to 41-35. Still, the Lady Generals couldn’t keep the pace when Belvoir found its footing again. The Lady Eagles outscored Myer on a 14-2 run over eight minutes.
Much of the remaining minutes of the game were punctuated with fouls, free throws and turnovers on the part of the Lady Generals, who only managed 23 points in the second half.
Belvoir also defeated Fort Lee Saturday, 63-48, to remain undefeated at 7-0 in the Washington Area Military Athletic Conference.
The Lady Eagles take the week off before heading to Walter Reed Army Medical Center Mar. 5 for an evening game.
Men capitalize on large early lead
The Eagles were equally competitive on the other side of the home team nightcap.
Belvoir held an early 18-10 lead, but Myer played dangerously close to Belvoir, seeking to slow the Eagles’ run.
Clarkton White sprung into action for Belvoir, picking up a steal at the Generals’ expense for a layup, then draining a three-pointer to take a 30-22 advantage over Myer.
Even as the Generals staggered back to life on offense as the first half wound down, Belvoir still had the last word as Justin Smith scored a quick layup as the buzzer sounded for a 50-35 lead at the break.
Tyrone Legette earned the Eagles’ first points out of the break, and coupled with three steals, a fast-break layup and foul shot by White, Belvoir found itself up 57-35.
Myer never posed much of a threat for the rest of the game, but head coach Herb Marshall still pushed his team, calling a timeout to address his players’ energy late in the game despite a handy lead.
The chat worked, as Smith came out of the huddle and drained an outside shot for a 74-53 lead with six minutes to play.
The 39-point victory was one of the Eagles’ largest this season.
Belvoir improves to 5-3 on the season after a Saturday loss to Fort Lee, 86-68, and a close 68-65 win over Quantico Sunday. The men return to action for a rematch against Quantico on the Marines’ home court at 1 p.m. Saturday.
