Double Knockout From The Gryphons

Rocky Mount High school's  two basketball programs will host the Sectional Finals for the second year in a row as the Lady Gryphon played their most complete game of the year in destroying South Central 59-39 while the boys had to beat Nash Central for the fourth time this year 85-70.

There was little doubt from the opening bell that the Lady Gryphons were looking for revenge of the 20 point drubbing that they took from the eventual State Champions Falcons in Rocky Mount last year.  Rocky Mount swarming defense created nine Falcon turnovers in the first quarter and that is all the Gryphons needed to lead by ten at the quarter 16-6. The lead jumped to 16 at the half and the Gryphons never gave the Lady Falcons any hope that the Gryphons would finally slack up.

J'Kyra Brown was once again missing outside shots but still put in 21 under the basket.  Alexus Cooper chipped in 15.  Brown pulled down 12 rebounds while Tia Hudgins grabbed 11 ricochets.    This was a game won by defensive pressure and Carmen Richardson and Amani Kipp all had a part in this rout.

Hayley McCorkle who was one of the players that killed Rocky Mount last year scored 11 and had seven rebounds but it was no where near enough for the Falcons.  Rocky Mount out rebounded South Central 38-25.  The Gryphons forced 23 turnovers  while having only 15 themselves.  Up next for Rocky Mount and if it is a Friday Night it must be time for Northern Nash.

Northern on the road at C B Aycock laid a licking on them 49-22 to set up the sectional final and fifth meeting of the year against Rocky Mount.  There is one thing for sure as the Big East will sent another girls team to the Regional for the second year in a row.

Rocky Mount boys ran into a Bulldog team that was determined to pull an upset on Rocky Mount's home floor and the Bulldogs played even Steven tied at 39 at the half. Over the past Several weeks the guards for Rocky Mount have controlled play by creating turnovers and getting easy layups for themselves but tonight Rocky Mount needed the inside game from Terrill Hilliard who tossed in 31.  Donte Battle added 18 and pulled down ten boards but Donte as a sophomore is becoming a man in the middle and the Bulldogs had many altered shots or deflected shots during the game.  Rocky mount started from the opening of the third quarter to distance themselves from the Bulldogs until the final victory by 15.

Nash Central finishes the season with eight losses and four they can put the blame on Rocky Mount.  This POD system keeping them in same sectional as Rocky Mount just may have cost them a trip to the Regional because the Bulldogs are a very good team  and the one team that they don't match up that well with is Rocky Mount.  Jalen Hendricks had 20 to lead  a determined effort by the Bulldogs.  Nate Pittman provided 12 points.

Rocky Mount won the rebounding 33-26 and the turnover game was about even at 18-17 Nash Central.  Rocky Mount will play Hertford County who tonight in Ahoskie knocked the Firebirds of Southern Nash out of the playoffs with a 69-61 win.

The Big East girls have dominated the playoffs so far as the #3 seed Nash Central girls traveled to Cleveland where they come home with a 56-35 win.  As of this writing we don't who they play but it will probably be West Craven  the #1 seed in the east bracket.  The only Big East girls team to lose in the playoffs is Hunt and they lost to conference foe Rocky Mount so the Big East Girls are perfect heading into Friday.

TV Has Changed Sports

Back in the olden days when I was a boy it was very special after Sunday dinner at grand ma's to go in the living room at watched the Washington Redskins on TV.  There was no such thing as Monday Night football or sports of any kind  during the week.  Along comes ESPN and their need to have sports on TV 24 hours a day.  In order to draw attention to their network they hire announcers who give everybody nicknames or color analyst  who talk about pine time or slam a jamma.  That is still not enough to satisfy 24 hours a day.  Other networks fight and pay outrageous prices just for the right to show the NFL on their network.  That's still not enough.  They all need the exciting plays that they can show as highlights so people will want to watch the next game.

Along comes a basketball player who on occasion just maybe once in a while takes three steps and launches a dynamic dunk That play is not on the high lights if it is called traveling. NFL games look more exciting when a passers throws the ball up in the air and the defender and the receiver are fighting for the ball  at the catch.  The pressure of showing exciting sports has brought about a change in the rules of every sport.  If it is not exciting enough for TV to cover you will be bankrupt soon and your sport out of business.

Who is the guy most effected by all this ? The answer is the referee.  If you are allowed to bump a receiver and he pushes you back as a play develops how can any penalty be called either way?  Under these conditions  the referee is always half wrong on every call.   Sports has forgotten their own rules for the sake of the all mighty dollar.  The ACC is just as bad as any of them wanting more  money.

Saturday N C State had two of their Legends of the past thrown out of a game because they were yelling at an official.  Remember now because of the contact in basketball that TV wants to have an exciting game and the ACC also wants because they want more money this official was always half wrong every time he blows the whistle.  Not only is the ACC looking for more money but in N C State's case they are on the verge of making or not making the NCAA tournament which puts more money in the pocket of the ACC which puts more money in the pocket of  N C State.

Yes the official had rabbit ears and did not do a very good job that moment in his life tossing two people out of a game over nothing.  I guarantee this that if you attended the Big East Tournament this past week you heard the same thing from fans and the only pressure every team and fans were playing for was the glory of victory.

One of the things that TV has done is brought on replays and when the replay shows the ref missed it and here comes a baseball manager out to argue 90% of the time he's going to get tossed and the manager  was right.  Our two Legends who were tossed from the State game  game say they never cussed or threaten the official.  They say they told the official that he was having a bad day.  The official's  bad day was just beginning as I have heard and seen on every sports show in America his name since.

I remember a survey was taken in the mid 80's, I don't remember who did it but the question was asked to State fans who was the worse officials in basketball.  Lenny Wertz won hands down on the survey.  This survey looked up every game that Wertz ever done involving N C State and they had won 91% of every game that he was involved in with the Wolfpack.  That was by far and  away the best percentage hands down that State had with any ref and yet he was their #1 bum referee.  What does that tell about all of us sports fans? All we care about is winning and if you are not going to make the calls for me to win you are a bum, even if you are the best of the bums.

Yes due to the fact that TV has changed the way referees call it on TV it has filtered down to high school and it is now called the same way.  Our lives have changed because of TV.  Referees don't have a chance when the TV shows every mistake.  Even without TV our desire to win  makes the Referees job  hopeless.  TV changing the rules to make it interesting for TV have made a referees life miserable.