At The Buzzer

I arrived at Northern Nash's gym at about 6.15 last night and the JV boys game had just started the fourth quarter.

The gym was already filled. Most of the time it takes at least halftime of the girls game to become standing room only but not last night.

What that jammed packed gym saw were two games that went right down to the last shot to determine a winner.

The girls action saw the Lady Gryphons hold on as Northern tried to tie and could not. I never found out what was the problem was, but at one point in the third quarter, there was a dispute at the scorer's table. I think each book had different information and RM's Dyonna Battle was ruled to have fouled out.

The Lady Gryphons are now 9-4 and 1-0 in conference play .

In the night cap....

The score was tied at the half 40-40. The end of the third quarter saw a 55-55 tie. Octavious Lyons put back a missed shot at the buzzer to send the Northern's gym into a sea of Knight fans as the Northern defend its home turf 64-63 over the Gryphons.

There is no telling how many people would go watch if there was a gym big enough for these two teams.

In the second quarter, Alonzo Sharpe recorded his 1,000th point. Later in the quarter, Tashawn Mabry went over 1,500 for his career. Charles Alston, who sat beside me tonight as I did TV and fed me the stats on the game, said that is only the second time in Rocky Mount history that two 1,000-point scorers have been on the same team.

The Gryphons dropped to 7-7 and 0-1 in conference play.

Tonight

Nash County will have their home boys featured on TV. The NFL playoffs are back in full focus as the Carolina Panthers will play host to the Arizona Cardinals. Former Northern Nash (Class of 2001) standout J.J. Arrington, the Cardinals' kick returner and third-down back, will try to take down the Panthers and ex-Southern Nash (Class of 1998) star Julius Peppers. The Panthers are double-digit favorites tonight in Charlotte. Fox will carry the primetime game.

Today's NFL action kicks off at 4.30 with the Baltimore Ravens and the Tennessee Titans. That game will be the CBS game. The nightcap starts at 8 p.m. from Charlotte. In their brief NFL playoff career, the Panthers have never lost a home game.

ACC basketball action starts full tilt this weekend. After Carolina's loss the other night, are we in for a basketball season where just about every team will win half its games?

The Wake-Carolina Sunday night will tell us a lot about this season.