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Falcons sweat out 57-50 OT win over Battlefield in district tourney final
Battlefield coach Al Ford could probably write a doctoral dissertation on “How to Defend Fauquier High Basketball Star Jerrelle Benimon.”
For three years, Ford’s Bobcats have studied Benimon on film and in person, and generally come up with some unique, creative ways to drape and blanket the 6-foot-8 senior, who was recently named district player of the year for the second year in a row.
Last Friday, Dr. Ford emerged from his laboratory with some new schemes only to see Benimon and the Falcons prevail, 57-50, in overtime in the Cedar Run District boys basketball tournament championship, held at FHS.
Facing constantly changing defenses designed to seal him in Bobcat Saran Wrap, a patient Benimon scored 12 of his game-high 17 points in the fourth quarter and overtime as Fauquier recovered from a six-point fourth quarter deficit. “It’s great to win the district tournament, too, and put a banner up,” said Benimon, whose Falcons also won the Cedar Run regular season title.
The victory was Fauquier’s 14th in a row, and the Falcons (21-3) are also undefeated at home this year at 14-0, heading into Tuesday’s Northwest Region quarterfinal game against Hylton (17-4), which ended too late for Times-Democrat deadlines.
A Fauquier win sends the Falcons into a Thursday region semifinal against the Mountain View-George Washington Danville winner.
Battlefield (16-8) played at Gar-Field Tuesday in another Northwest Region quarterfinal.
With both squads already locking up Northwest Region playoff spots prior to the final, the game might have seemed meaningless to some. But not the Bobcats, who slumped low in their chairs for the awards ceremony as the Falcons celebrated an exhilarating win.
Battlefield did nearly everything in its power to win. The Bobcats bolted from a 22-22 halftime tie with a dynamic third quarter. Back-to-back 3-pointers by senior guard Jahmal Jones, followed by two Jones’ free throws, gave the Battlefield a 35-27 lead late in the third.
That’s when FHS guard Joey Geary hit a a shockingly long 3-pointer from way behind the top of the key that Ford called the biggest play of the game. Battlefield was playing stifling zone defense at the time, denying Benimon, and the FHS offense was desperate for a spark.
“That was a deep three. We were disappointed with that, we try to contest all threes, even one from there,” said Ford. “That was a turning point and helped them get momentum. We were in our big monster zone, and cutting it to five was huge.”
Battlefield rebuilt its lead to eight at 39-31 on a drive by James Robinson to open the fourth quarter, before Fauquier stepped up its play, thanks in part to a rowdy home crowd estimated at 1,200, and some Bobcat turnovers...
See the Wednesday print edition of the Fauquier Times-Democrat for the complete story.
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