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Chapmanville holds off Red Devils, 49-43

CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Chapmanville got off to a stellar start in Wednesday’s Class AA quarterfinal against Ravenswood.

Ultimately, that made all the difference in allowing the No. 3 Tigers to advance with a 49-43 victory in a contest they never trailed in, but didn’t have secured until less than 30 seconds remained at the Charleston Coliseum.

“Everybody here is good and there’s a reason they’re here,” Tigers’ head coach Brad Napier said. “They’ve won the right to be here. Ravenswood is one of the best-coached teams in the state. They weren’t giving up easy and we knew it was going to be a fight.”

Ravenswood (19-6) struggled offensively in the first quarter and didn’t score until the 4:18 mark on a Matthew Carte layup, at which point the Tigers led, 7-2.

A Beau Bennett three-pointer marked the Red Devils’ only other field goal of the opening quarter, and the Tigers made half of their 12 field-goal attempts to hold a 14-5 lead through 8 minutes.

“We started really well and our pressure bothered Ravenswood early. We got the game at a faster pace early and that’s always to our benefit,” Napier said.

RHS, meanwhile, was 2 for 11 from the field through 8 minutes.

“I fired my layup coach after the first quarter,” Red Devils’ head coach Mick Price said. “Gosh, it could’ve helped if we’d have made a few.”

Although a Logan Alfred second-chance basket brought Ravenswood to within seven 22 seconds into the second quarter, Tigers’ 6-foot-7 junior Zion Blevins scored inside twice, and 6-5 Brody Dalton, a West Virginia University baseball signee, followed suit to make it 20-7.

“That was the game plan coming into it. We knew we were bigger and stronger so Zion and I focused on getting right at the basket and finishing overtop of them,” Dalton said.

A Blevins jumper 3:48 before halftime gave the Tigers (21-3) their largest first-half advantage at 26-11, and they went to the break in front, 30-18.

While Blevins led the offensive charge with 12 first-half points, teammate Sal Dean, a 6-guard had 11 of the game’s 26 rebounds through the first two quarters to key the Tigers’ 17-9 advantage on the boards against an undersized Red Devils’ squad.

“Knowing they didn’t have any big guys, if we crashed the glass, we’d have good chances of getting extra points,” Dean said, “and we could push the ball with a defensive rebound and get it going.”

Early into the second half, however, it was apparent Ravesnwood wasn’t going away quietly.

The Red Devils fell behind by 16 after Dalton and Dean opened the second half with baskets from close range, but they then scored eight unanswered points and trailed 34-26 when Matthew Carte made a layup at the 4:38 mark.

“Mick’s a legend in this state, and he’s a legend for a reason,” Napier said. “He made great halftime adjustments and took away a lot of things we wanted to do in the second half.”

A Bennett triple cut Chapmanville’s lead to 36-31 not long after, and after Dalton countered with a layup, Drew Hunt’s old-fashioned three-point play brought Ravenswood to within four — the closest the Red Devils had been since a 3-0 deficit.

“We did a good job limiting them to one shot and we came became more aggressive and started attacking them,” Price said.

However, out of a timeout, Dean made a three-pointer in the final seconds of the third that sent Chapmanville into the fourth with a 41-34 lead.

“That kind of eased everything up a little bit,” Napier said.

Hunt’s triple opened the fourth-quarter scoring and when Alfred followed with a basket, RHS was behind 41-39 with 6:30 remaining.

“We got it down to two,” Price said, “and all you can ask for is an opportunity and a chance.”

The Red Devils, however, could never get over the hump. They went the rest of the way with only one field goal — Carte’s layup with 59 seconds left. 

While that cut the Tigers’ lead to 45-42, senior guard Isaiah Smith stepped up in a big way, making two free throws with 50 seconds to play. Smith then corralled a pivotal offensive rebound when Dean missed the front end of a 1-and-1, and that led to two more free throws from Smith with 31 seconds left to provide the final margin.

“They don’t get any more pressure-packed than those,” Napier said. “Isaiah deserves it. He’s a four-year starter.”

Blevins and Dean tied for team-high scoring honors with 14 points apiece. Dean also had 13 rebounds and four steals.

Dalton scored 12 points and made 6-of-9 shots, while Smith added nine points.

The aforementioned four players provided all of Chapmanville’s offense.

Carte’s 15 points were a game high and nine came over the final two quarters in the final game of his storied career at Ravenswood.

“It’s not the ending I wanted,” Carte said. “I wish we’d have won a state championship, but it’s been a great career.”

(Chapmanville postgame press conference)





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