Patriots stress teamwork in victory

Teamwork was the focus on Monday evening as Albemarle came away with a 49-34 victory over Riverbend.

It was a different story from the teams’ previous meeting in early January, where the Patriots were handily defeated 58-39. Using a new starting lineup and active player rotation, Albemarle coach Greg Maynard stressed the importance of team play.

“We were trying to be patient, spread it around, play as a team offensively and use everyone. Whoever had the opening, we were looking to them to take the shot. We weren’t looking for one particular player to score,” Maynard said. “If it took two minutes to get a shot off, that’s fine, but we wanted to play as a team.”

Riverbend’s points came mainly from behind the 3-point arc, but the Patriots were content to put numbers on the board from slashing the lane and using stick-backs.

Without the services of former standout Andrew Mann, who is no longer a member of the team, Albemarle had a few offensive struggles. The Patriots did not put up large numbers, but took a 23-17 lead into the half.

The Bears found some life early in the third quarter, starting out the second half with a 6-1 run and taking the lead for the first time since the opening basket. The Patriots were quick to respond, with Danny Vaughn and Maury Baker knocking down consecutive treys.

Lee Carneal kept the momentum on Albemarle’s side for the start of the fourth. Carneal opened the final period by picking apart Riverbend’s defense for an easy layup and finished with an immediate steal on the Bears’ inbound pass. Behind nine trips to the charity stripe and eight points from Kendall Hawkins, Albemarle managed to hold off the Bears for entirety of the fourth.

It was a well-rounded scoring night for the Patriots, with eight different players contributing. Hawkins led all scorers with 14 points. Carneal chipped in with 12, with Vaughn adding nine and pulling down 10 rebounds.

“We’ve got pretty good depth; we have a lot of guys that can come on and they’re all pretty even. We try to give everybody a chance,” Maynard said. “We have guys that can come off the bench and do a lot for us. I’m just proud of the way they busted it out there. They gave it their all.”

Deion Scott paced the Bears with 13 points, while Trevon Walton added 12. Riverbend coach Wayne Via credits his team’s lack of cohesion and teamwork in the defeat.

“We came out and didn’t execute. We didn’t play as a team tonight, and it showed on the court. To me, we’ve got to become a team again,” Via said. “Being a team is what wins ball games. Until we play together and work hard together, that’s not going to happen.”

Albemarle plays its final regular season game Wednesday, when the Patriots will take on Brooke Point in a home matchup. Riverbend also finishes out its regular season with a trip to North Stafford.