High school and college basketball

By: Roy Waters | Morganton News Herald
Published: February 17, 2009

A huge crowd turned out for the Freedom-East Burke matchup last week but those who went to see two good basketball games were disappointed. Freedom dominated both games from the very start.
The Lady Patriots led 43-17 at the halfway mark and the Freedom boys team was up 34-14 at the half.
East Burke's girls fought all the way but I thought the boys gave a poor effort on the boards. Many times they shot and not a single player was in rebounding position.
It's going to take a good team to beat either of Freedom's teams in the state playoffs which start next week. The boys have good size, speed, outside shooting and defense, and could go a long way. The girls may have their best in front of them as well.
College basketball
University of North Carolina's Ty Lawson played one of the best games against Duke University you'll ever see a point guard play. He drove to the basket well all night but some of his drives down the center with Greg Paulus guarding him were things of beauty.
Paulus, remember, was a great all-around athlete in high school and was recruited by many big midwestern teams to play quarterback, including Notre Dame, but he was no match for Lawson.
Lawson made 17 of his 20 shots from the floor and free throw line and finished with 25 points, his high for the year.
Everyone is anxious over the ankle injury Davidson College's Stephen Curry suffered Saturday at Furman. It's almost NCAA tournament time and what a thrill he and his teammates gave us last year.
Curry has the greatest footwork on offense I've seen since Larry Bird. With just a couple steps he can be open, both with the ball and without the ball. Tyler Hansbrough has a weakness in this area. He has a lot of footwork but much of it is unnecessary. The effort he gives in staying after the shot or rebound more than makes up for any weakness.
What a great year the ACC is having from top bottom. The conference has piled up 193 total wins and has lost only 27 games to outside competition, with 12 of the losses coming by the bottom three teams.
We may not win the championship game but we'll more than likely lead the NCAA tournament in total wins. This year three teams already sport 20 victories and three have also been voted No. 1 at sometime during the season.
Our part of the basketball word was saddened recently with the sudden death of former Davidson great Mike Maloy. He led his team to within one game of the Final Four in 1968 and 1969, losing both times to North Carolina and therein is another story.
Carolina's best player was almost Maloy's teammate. Charlie Scott had promised Davidson coach 'Lefty' Driesell he would come to Davidson, but at the very last moment, he enrolled at UNC.
Scott proved to be the difference in the two regionals against Davidson as Carolina won the first time by four points and Scott pulled out the second, with 32 points and the game-winner at the buzzer.
If Maloy and Scott could have teamed up together at Davidson, the may have cut UCLA's 7-year championship run in half.
When Driesell came to the Wildcats, they had all they could handle in Furman, VMI and The Citadel but in a very short time he had them ranked in the country's top 10.
This type of event that cost the "Old Left-Hander" Charlie Scott, followed him throughout his near 50-year coaching career. He came within one rung of the top of the ladder that would leave him as one of the game's all-time great coaches.