Upon Further Review

“It’s exciting,“ she said.

Berry hit a 3-pointer from the wing to open the second half and tie the game at 26. The Giants never trailed again.

Of course, her shot came at a critical moment after a horrific first half where the Little Giants looked like they didn’t even belong on the same court as Bassett, let alone the Group AA quarterfinals.

The Bengals came out aggressive (which surprised the Little Giants), drove the lanes and kicked it back out when the box colapsed and drained some 3-pointers. The Little Giants looked lost at times on the defensive end and their shot selection, to say the least, was questionable at best.

That all changed thanks to a challenge from first-year coach Secrett Stubblefield in the locker room at halftime.

“I asked a question,“ Stubblefield said of her halftime speech. “ ‘Do you guys feel like you’re trying as hard as you tried during the regional semifinal and final?‘ All of them shook their heads, they didn’t feel the same fire.“

Then they put their hands together and, according to Stubblefield, decided to go out there and “maximize our potential.“

So, after scoring 23 points in the first half (that’s two quarters, folks), Waynesboro went out and exploded in the third, scoring 24 points and never looking back.

And it all started with Berry’s 3-pointer from the wing.

OK, so now will everybody who said Waynesboro is a one-woman team please be quiet.

And another thing: Devon Brown on Friday said she was sick. “I caught a little virus,“ she said after the win over Bassett. “I think it was the flu.“

All she did was score 17 points, pull down 17 rebounds and ran the court (yep, she was running point for most of the game) with ease. (Including finding her way out of a triple team just beyond half court and hitting Berry underneath.)

Wouldn’t you like to catch that bug?

When Brown found Berry underneath, the unsung guard missed the layup. Hey, kudos to Berry on her 20 points and all, but she could have had 34 if she hit the seven layups she missed.

Thirty-four points? Now that would have really shut all the Little Giant critics up.

If you ask Stubblefield, and we did, all that talk should have been silenced long ago.

“I don’t think [Berry is] proving anybody wrong,“ she said. “She’s an awesome player. She’s just doing what she’s been doing all season.“

Stubblefield is right, but when you do it in front of a large crowd at James Madison University on the Group AA tourney stage, it nails any critic’s lips shut.

Bad first half for Waynesboro? Geez, yeah. Great second half? Of course. But what’s the deal?

“We haven’t played in a while,“ Berry said. “Once our game gets there and the shots are falling, we’re an amazing team.“

The Little Giants have to be amazing only two more times.

So they head down to Richmond’s Siegel Center where they’ll face Bruton on Thursday at 6 p.m. So what does this Bruton team bring? It has Jen Falin, the Bay Rivers District’s Player of the Year, and her 23 ppg average. They also bring 5-foot-10 freshman Sharmaine Baker (12 ppg and eight boards per game in the postseason) and slasher Letitia Fowler (nine ppg).

So, going by Stubblefield’s theorem of great basketball teams, looks like the Little Giants’ 31 ppg from Devon Brown, Berry’s 13.8 and Woodson’s 10 coupled with a suffocating defense led by freshman LaToya Diggs means the Giants are in the Group AA finals.

Right?

After the girls’ win, the end of an era at Waynesboro took place as the boys fell to Blacksburg 59-47 in their Group AA quarterfinal.

With the loss, the Giants key group of seniors — Joel Robinson, Andy Sherrill, Blair deCourcy, Tim Brown, Jay Thompson and Nick Gore will never grace the court together again. You had to excuse the tears and breaking voices in the locker room. This was a group of seniors that has played together since they were six or seven.

Were they upset about the loss? Of course they were, they had plans together and it involved winning a state title. But what they were really upset about was never playing together again.

But did they really lose? Sure, they lost the game, but let’s remember where this Waynesboro boys basketball program was before their arrival. The Little Giants were a laughing stock and getting blasted by all comers. (Remember those 70-point losses to “those” R.E. Lee teams?)

To turn it around and make in the Group AA tourney in back-to-back years is nothing short of epic under coach C. Jay DeWitt.

“Believe me,“ DeWitt said Saturday. “This has been a lot more fun than my first two years. This bunch has been outstanding since the second half of their sophomore season.“

“Twenty three and six was a heck of year,“ DeWitt said, stopping to watch a teary-eyed Robinson leave a pin-drop quiet locker room. “And I’m really proud of what these guys have done. And it’s been a heck of a ride for me.“

DeWitt went on to talk about the end of the Gore, Robinson, Sherrill, Brown, Thompson and deCourcy era in the River City.

“There’s a lot of disappointment in [the locker room] right now,“ he said. “Hopefully, they’ll hang their heads in there, but once they get out of the locker room, they’ll hold them up high for what they’ve accomplished the last two years.“

DeWitt’s right. They should on both accounts.

Sure, a furious rally fell short against Lancaster. But don’t tell me for a second that you weren’t surprised by Wilson Memorial’s postseason run. And don’t tell me for a second you don’t think first-year coach Jackie Bryan did a heck of a job. Really? What do you think of her now? Yep, thought so. She’s a keeper.

Seriously, do people around Augusta County and the city of Waynesboro have their feelings hurt too easily? That’s the only thing I can think of as to why two first-year coaches (Stubblefield and Bryan) have put up with so many doubters and naysayers.

I was talking to Mary Baldwin’s all-time leading scorer Jessica Carter about the two coaches, mainly Stubblefield, and the crap they’ve put up with all season long.

“Why is that?“ Carter asked.

Probably because they instill discipline and raise their voices a bit during games and practices. Plus, they’re both firecrackers that take pride in the team they’re coaching.

Carter looked at me like I was the crazy one.

“Isn’t that what coaches are supposed to do?“ she replied.

Um, yeah Jessica, it is. Now tell the rest of the people in this area. Oh, and don’t forget to tell them that the all-time leading scorer at a COLLEGE said that’s what coaches are supposed to do. Pretty please.

Talk about a total-team effort (what’s my cliche counter at?), the Buffalo Gap girls put 11 girls in the book — four in double figures — as they dismantled the Thanks-for-the-Split-Division Appomattox Regional Governor’s School, 72-50, at Riverheads (yes, Riverheads) on Saturday.

Now the Bison are two wins away from giving Gap it’s second state title of the school year (remember football, anyone?) with Twin Valley standing in its way on the road to the final.

“They are disciplined,“ said first-year coach Chad Coffey of Twin Valley. “And well coached.“

Disciplined? Well coached? Coffey could be talking about his Bison.

One last thing: Sure, it was an exhibition game. Sure, it was a bunch of out-of-shape guys (and girls) with a few stars (Carter and former NBA player Cory Alexan-der). And sure, it was just for fun as a bunch of area folks took on the Harlem Wizards on Sunday at Wilson Memorial High School.

But with four minutes left to play and sitting on the bench, R.E. Lee coach Paul Hatcher walked up to me and asked, “Have you played twice yet?“ I shook by head and he told me to get in the game.

So now I know how everybody that’s played for the legendary coach felt, if only for a split second in a charity scrimmage.

Let me tell you, it was awesome.