Miller handles FUMA

After taking home a Division II state championship a season ago, the Miller School moved one step closer to its first VIS Division I crown with a 68-52 home win over Fork Union on Wednesday night in the quarterfinal round of the state tournament.

The No. 2 Mavericks, who dressed only seven players for the game, got 20 points each from Hippolyte Tsafack and Mychal Parker and turned a one-point halftime lead (28-27) into a comfortable margin for most of the second half.

Parker, who is headed to Maryland next season, cashed in on two three-point plays and scored 12 of Miller’s 19 points in the third quarter to give the Mavericks some breathing room against a pesky FUMA squad.

“My coach kind of got on me at halftime and told me I needed to step it up. That kind of got in my head and I didn’t want to let my team down so I had to step it up and play my game,” Parker said.

Parker’s game includes a smooth outside touch, but the senior rarely took a jumpshot against the Blue Devils. Instead, he could be found running the floor in transition and slashing to the rim in the halfcourt set.

“The game comes so easy to him that sometimes he relaxes a bit,” said Miller coach Scott Willard. “We got into him in the third and he responded.”

If the third period belonged to Parker, his running mate, Tsafack, owned the fourth. The powerful post player scored 12 points in the final quarter, including three rim-rattling dunks during a stretch late in the game in which the Mavericks scored on five consecutive slams.

While Miller’s two top scorers were racking up the highlight-reel footage, it was senior point guard D’andre Corbin who set the table for his teammates. Corbin scored eight points and dished out eight assists on the night for the Mavericks. Three times, Corbin found the open man on lob passes that ended in dunks for Miller.

“I love throwing the ball up to these guys,” Corbin said. “They’re going to go up and catch it whether it’s a bad one or a good one.”

After receiving a first-round bye in the state tournament, Miller was rested coming into the quarterfinals. Fork Union was anything but fresh. The Blue Devils survived a 69-66 overtime win over Bishop Sullivan on Tuesday night before taking on the Mavericks a day later.

“I don’t know if last night had anything to do with it,” Fork Union coach Matthew Donohue said after the game. “Any time you’re playing the No. 2 team in the state, the kids are going to be excited.”

Fork Union rode that excitement in the first half and briefly took the lead early in the third quarter before a Miller 14-4 run to end the stanza put the home team on top 47-37 entering the fourth.

Another 12-2 Miller run in the fourth quarter put the game out of reach. The night was highlighted by a high-arcing alley-oop pass from Corbin to Parker that the senior caught and flushed with two hands.

“I have to give props to D’andre for throwing that alley-oop. He threw it to the sky and I was like, ‘I’ve got to go up and get it,’” Parker said.

Tsafack controlled the boards for Miller. The Memphis-bound senior forward pulled down 15 rebounds to go along with his 20 points on the night. Brice Kofane scored 13 points and had six rebounds while Preston Terrell added seven points and the only 3-pointer of the night for the Mavs.

Mark Shuman led Fork Union with 10 points and was the only player in double figures for the Blue Devils.

With the win, Miller advances to the Division I semifinals on Friday at Virginia State University in Ettrick and will face Blue Ridge, a 75-66 winner over Paul VI on Wednesday night.

“We’ve got some momentum heading into states and we’re going to need it because we are playing some good teams. But I think we’re ready,” Corbin said.