Chris McGahren scored 12 points, including a crucial putback with 13 seconds remaining, to lead Western Albemarle over Waynesboro 55-51 in a back-and-forth affair in the Warriors’ season opener.
Michael Vale and Nick Yancey added seven points apiece for Western, which trailed for much of the second and third quarters before a 12-4 run put them in front 37-32 after three. McGahren scored eight points during the burst, which saw WAHS hold Waynesboro without a field goal for more than four minutes.
“[Chris’] three-ball wasn’t going — and he’s an excellent three-point shooter — but he just started driving it inside, he made some really nice stop-and-pop jumpers and took a couple all the way to the basket,” WAHS head coach Darren Maynard said. “We work really hard on our defense, and that’s about all we can do. We don’t like to go out and race horses all the time.”
Waynesboro promptly scored the first five points of the final period, tying the game on an NBA-range three-pointer by Jah-Allah McCarthy, and the fourth quarter was nip-and-tuck throughout. McCarthy’s two free throws with 3:55 remaining allowed the Little Giants to briefly regain the lead at 42-41, but an acrobatic layup by Yancey put Western back in front for good on the next possession.
The Warriors, however, couldn’t quite shake Waynesboro and compounded their offensive issues by going 4-of-11 from the foul line in the final 1:07. A basket by Waynesboro’s Steffan Thornton with a minute to go brought the Giants back within one possession, and Thornton hit two foul shots with 37.3 seconds to go to make it 53-51 a couple trips down the floor later. Waynesboro promptly fouled Carrington Murphy, who missed both free throws, but McGahren slipped behind the defense to grab the rebound and put it back in. Waynesboro turned the ball over on its last possession, one of 13 giveaways by the Giants on the evening.
“My focus was just to crash the boards and get us the rebound because I knew those two points would go a long way in sealing the game,” McGahren said. “We really worked hard for this one.”
Both teams started slowly in the first quarter–Waynesboro made only two field goals, while WAHS had just three. The Warriors led 12-7 after one and stretched the lead to seven on a basket by Vale to open the second quarter, but Waynesboro put together a 15-2 run over the next 4:15 to open up a 22-16 lead midway through the second quarter. WAHS went four minutes without a basket until Murphy scored and Ryan Ingram hit two free throws to trim the deficit to two. Waynesboro led 26-23 at the break.
For the game, Western struggled from the field, missing numerous easy looks from close range and misfiring on all 12 of their three-point attempts. Waynesboro, which finished 4-of-10 from beyond the arc, was led by McCarthy and Burke Bender, who each had 11 points. Thornton added 10 and Zachary Hatter had nine for the Little Giants.
“I’m not sure we could’ve had a worse night offensively, and [Waynesboro] gets a lot of credit for that,” Maynard said. “They play you tough, they switch all your screens, they play physical with you. We have a wide array of offensive talent and it was a no-show tonight.”
The Warriors will return to action Friday night when they host Norfolk Christian at 7:45 p.m.
