Buckingham tops Cumberland for James River title

BUCKINGHAM – When Buckingham County needed leadership the most, it turned to two players who have delivered all year long.

After battling Cumberland to a six-point lead at halftime, the Knights got a combined 19 points from D.J. Jones and Taylor Boyers in a pivotal third quarter that saw them pull away for good and secure their second consecutive James River District tournament championship, 72-61.

Jones led the Knights with 29 points and knocked down three straight 3-pointers from the same spot on the floor in front of the home bench midway through the third quarter to push his team’s lead to double digits and keep a pesky Cumberland squad at bay.

“I wasn’t hitting my shots in the first half. Going into halftime my coaches told me to keep shooting and find my rhythm,” said Jones, who scored 17 of his game-high total in the second half.

While Jones was lighting up the scoreboard from behind the arc, Boyers - who was announced as James River District Player of the Year following the game - was hitting the glass and getting stickback buckets in the paint for Buckingham (15-9). Boyers scored eight of his 19 points in the third quarter.

“We made some adjustments at halftime. We knew Cumberland was going to come out and go even harder but we just kept the intensity up and kept banging,” said Boyers, who also pulled down 17 rebounds in the game.

Despite trailing by 14 points entering the fourth quarter, Cumberland (12-11) did not go home quietly. Dimitri Walton, who led the Dukes in scoring with 25 points, had nine in the final frame but couldn’t pull his team any closer than six points at 65-59 with 1:33 left to play.  From there, Buckingham closed the game on a 6-0 run to seal the district title.

The Knights’ second district tournament title in as many seasons didn’t come easily. The team had to deal with the sudden departure of head coach Brian Wilson midway through the season. Interim coach Reid Saeler is proud of his group of players who stuck together when falling apart would have been easier.

“We just talked about one day at a time and that’s how we try to take it,” Saeler said. “They could have fallen apart but they stayed together and worked hard the whole time. I’m proud of these guys. It’s amazing how well they work together and this is a major accomplishment.”

Boyers agreed: “This feels really good after all the adversity we’ve been through to come out as district champs.“

With the win, Buckingham locked up the No. 4 seed in next week’s Region B, Division 2 tournament.  The Knights will host No. 5 Appomattox on Wednesday at 7 p.m.  Despite the loss, Cumberland claims a No. 3 seed in the Region B Division 1 playoffs and will host No. 6 Manassas Park, also on Wednesday at 7 p.m.