The first two games of the VISAA Division 2 tournament, Miller barely broke a sweat. In the championship game though, things changed, but just a little bit. Last year’s state title victory was a washout of Nansemond-Suffolk, but with the Saints returning the bulk of their roster, this year’s meeting was bound to be a bit different. There were no double-digit margins in this title game — instead it was back-and-forth with Miller leaning on it’s depth in the paint and the Nansemond sticking with it’s hot hand. At the end of the day, it was the Mavericks depth that proved to be the difference. For the third straight campaign, the Mavericks finished up their season with a state championship, this one in a close battle with a 46-41 win.
“We wanted to give ourselves a chance at the end to finish things off and we did,” said Miller coach James Braxton. “It’s kind of tradition (winning this tournament) now. We’ve made a name for ourselves in our area but in the state as well. It’s huge for our school. These kids play hard and we’re kind of hidden in the small town of Crozet.”
Saints guard Harper Birdsong kept her team in the game almost single handedly as the George Washington committ knocked down shot after shot from the outside in the first three quarters. She finished with 15 of her team’s first 23 points and went on to score that many herself to lead all players. But the Mavericks defense held her to just two points in the final frame, and once the Birdsong well dried up for Nansemond, Miller was able to create the separation it needed in the fourth quarter to put together the 3-peat.
“Physically and mentally, we know we’re tougher than any other team,” Imani Bryant said. “We just had to stay calm. We’ve fought through so much with so many new players.”
The Mavericks started out strong with Howard-bound Imani Bryant and Micah Maloney inside and Secret Bryant and Aby Morrill shooting from beyond the arc. They built a 10-6 lead and by the middle of the second quarter with Hannah Woodard’s help, they were up 20-14. Birdsong led the Saints with an 11-5 run to close out the second though and that knotted the game up at 25-25 heading into the break.
From there, it was a methodical fight to the finish. The Mavericks got a pair of 3-pointers from Secret Bryant in third quarter that fueled the way to a 2-point lead going to the fourth quarter. With just over six minutes to play, the game was tied at 36-36. A bucket underneath and free throw shooting from Imani Bryant paired with a Maloney steal and layup gave the Mavericks a 41-36 lead with just under five minutes on the clock.
“Normally I’m looking for my point guard, but I just really wanted that bucket since I wasn’t having the easiest game,” Maloney said. “Thankfully it changed the game.”
In the last half of the final frame, the Mavericks went to work on the clock. The Saints cut the lead to three with 3:45 remaining and minute later, after a pair of defensive stops, got the deficit to as close as 41-39. Nansemond got the ball with a chance to tie the game but a turnover forced by Secret Bryant gave Miller possession with 90 seconds left. The Mavericks turned the ball over after getting an offensive rebound, but on the other end of the floor, Maloney came up with a steal, got the ball to Secret Bryant, the Mavericks were shooting free throws with 50.9 seconds to go.
Visibly trembling, the Miller junior didn’t let it bother her. She knocked down the front end of her 1-and-1 and then follow through with the back end to make it 43-29 for her squad.
“I wanted this more than anything,” Secret Bryant said. “I knew we had to stay calm. Keep our team calm.”
A rebound from Imani Bryant after Birdsong just missed from the top of the key, sent Miller to the line again. After another failed possession from the Saints, it was Aby Morrill shooting foul shots. Then with 8.1 seconds left, Secret Bryant made one last trip to the charity stripe and put the game out of reach at 46-41 and wrapped up the victory.
“We’ve been working to this all year and it was a rough start,” Maloney said. “We picked each other up, didn’t put each other down.”
Miller’s balance showed at the end of the day on the scoring sheet. Imani Bryant and Secret Bryant both had 12 points. Woodard had eight points. Morrill added seven. Imani Bryant finished with 12 rebounds.
Birdsong finished with 23 points. Caroline Hogg chipped in eight points. No other Saint was able to score more than four points though.
It was a fitting swan song for the Mavericks’ seniors in Maloney and Bryant. And while they move after graduation this spring, Miller has eight returning players with state title experience back to make a run for a fourth straight championship. In addition to the 3-peat, this is Miller’s fifth championship in the last seven years with the back-to-back title in 2010 and 2011 coming at the Division 3 level.
