The William Byrd Terriers high-scoring boys basketball team was put on hold Saturday afternoon in the Hidden Valley gym.
Kevin Tuck’s Byrd squad sat admiringly on the visitor’s bench as Hidden Valley head coach Troy Wells was honored along with his wife, Patty, in a surprise pre-game ceremony celebrating Wells’ announced retirement after 45 years of coaching at the high school level.
What was expected to be a short program before the 4:00 matinee tipoff, turned into a scene more similar to a wedding reception line. Everyone, especially Wells, was thrilled as over 100 former players, coaching associates, friends and family formed a procession into the Titan gym to pay tribute to one of the most influential coaches in their lives, not to mention a VHSL Hall of Fame member and 8-time state championship coach while at Martinsville.
“I had no earthly idea this was going to take place,” Wells said afterward. “I was completely floored when I walked out. There were some very special folks here today.”
After the masses moved from the court to the bleachers, it was back to basketball where William Byrd, the #2 team in the current “Big-11” boys poll, patiently pulled away from a slow-paced first half to dispatch Hidden Valley 48-26.
The first quarter saw the two opposite styles of play wrangle for control. Byrd was attacking with every possession, while Hidden Valley walked the ball up the court and passed the ball around the perimeter while looking for a high percentage scoring opportunity against the taller Terriers. Byrd led 8-7 after the first eight minutes.
It was 10-9 Terriers midway through the second quarter before Evan Owens and L.J. Basham connected from behind-the-arc for Byrd to create the game’s first big separation that sent the Terriers to the halftime break up 17-12.
“Hidden Valley definitely kept it at their pace,” Tuck said after the game. “The first half score looked more like a first quarter score. It was exactly where Hidden Valley wanted it.”
The Terriers took control in the third quarter, outscoring Hidden Valley 17-7 to take a 34-19 lead into the final frame. The keys for Byrd were finding space on shots from behind-the-arc and the interior play of 6-foot-7 senior Alex Harron who used a score-and-harm, a layup and a stick back to help push the Byrd lead to 14 points late in the quarter.
Owens hit a three-pointer with 3:13 left in the game to get the Terrier lead to 46-26, and both coaches emptied their respective benches to let the subs settle the final margin.
“All in all, we did a good job on defense and a pretty good job of being patient and finding space on our 3-pointers,” Tuck added. The Terriers hit from long-range seven times in the game.
“We didn’t play well in the second half,” Wells noted afterward. “We took some ill-advised shots that led to some of their scores. We need to do a better job of executing our defense.
Owens led the Byrd attack with a game-high 14 points, while Harron dropped in 13 and Damon Childress knocked down 10.
Cam Sine paced Hidden Valley with 7 points, while Graham Whitaker added 6 points for the Titans.
Bill Turner