Jordan Saylor seemed to sense it — the moment in the fourth quarter when Charlottesville’s boys basketball team needed a spark.
“We stepped up the defense, our defense was lacking a little bit and they were getting too many open shots,” Saylor said. “So we turned the defense up, that’s all.”
Just like that, Saylor took control with a series of steals and a huge 3-pointer. His eight total fourth quarter points helped spark the Black Knights, who led by just three points at the start of the final frame, to a 70-51 win over Fluvanna County in the Jefferson District semifinals.
“He’s had a great season and I think by far he’s been the best player in our district,” said Fluvanna coach Munro Rateau. “He does so much for his team, he doesn’t have to score points to help them.”
The Flucos managed to hold Saylor to just four points in the first three quarters, a feat against the recently crowned Jefferson District player of the year. But Tyreek Ragland picked up the slack, scoring 17 points, 10 of which came before halftime.
“He plays down in the post a lot because if we get penetration, we can just drop it off to him and it’s an easy lay-up,” said Charlottesville coach Mitch Minor. “He’s pretty quick and he’s a quick jumper. He helped us out a lot.”
Caleb Gage and Mica Girstantas chipped in 14 points each as the Black Knights’ fleet of guards managed to stay a step ahead of the Flucos. Fluvanna made a big push in the third quarter to cut the Charlottesville lead to just three points. Vinny Agee scored 10 of his 24 points in the third quarter, hitting a pair of 3-pointers during that period.
Things went cold for the Flucos in the fourth though as Fluvanna managed just five points in the quarter as Charlottesville accelerated and pulled away.
“We just made some critical turnovers and when you turn the ball over to them, it’s two points in a matter of seconds,” Rateau said. “But I thought we had a great effort tonight.”
Hunter DeForge finished with eight points and Jameel Wilson notched seven points for the Flucos.
Charlottesville will take on Albemarle in the Jefferson District final Friday while the Flucos will get focused on the Conference 23 tournament that starts next week.
