Don’t be surprised if the courtside announcer at Woody Deans Court had a sore throat after Tuesday night’s contest in the Patrick Henry gym. He did a lot of talking.
In one of the most lopsided blowouts in recent local high school basketball, PH put on a shooting clinic on their way to the 111-44 win over the visiting Martinsville Bulldogs. The Patriots came out of the gate on fire and never looked back. The stats were staggering.
PH put up 35 points in the first quarter alone, led 55-23 at halftime, and outscored Martinsville 28-6 in the final frame when the outcome was more than securred and the Patriot bench entered the game like a Christmas parade.
Martinsville had no answer, and that led to some testy moments down the stretch that left the Bulldog players and head coach Charlie Holland venting their frustration. “Things got out of hand,” Holland commented outside the Bulldog locker room afterward. “We’ve had some tough games so far and our schedule caught up with us. Give PH credit- they played well.”
That may have been the understatement of the night. The Patriots hit 17 three-point shots from behind the arc while pressing Martinsville into numerous turnovers that led to fast-break baskets. “It was a nice shooting performance tonight,” Patriot head coach Jack Esworthy noted. “Our identity is defense and we don’t get all those 3’s without executing great defense.”
“We had two tough games at Potomac, and we’ve had eleven days off,” Esworthy added. “I was concerned we might be rusty, but these guys erased any doubts.”
Christian Kirchman led the PH onslaught with a game-high and career-high 30 points. Marcus Banks threw down 23 points and Tre Terry added 14 for Patrick Henry, which improved to 4-0 on the season.
BILL TURNER game story/photos
