The odds were stacked against St. Anne’s-Belfield’s inexperienced squad going into Tuesday night with Virginia Episcopal’s high-octane, loaded squad coming to town. When the Bishops absolutely lit it up from behind the 3-point line in the first quarter, pouring in seven three-pointers to leap out to a 13-point lead, the task became nearly impossible.
“That was impressive — that was very impressive,” said STAB coach Brian Kent.
VES rolled to an 83-48 victory over STAB, with Isaac Belton leading the way with a 27-point assault. Belton went 7 for 10 from the 3-point line on his own, hitting shot after shot. He buried one 3-pointer without ever setting his feet, gliding off a screen, adjusting in mid-air and burying the long ball from the top of the key.
“He’s been working hard at it the last few days,” said VES coach Curtis Staples. “We’ve got three really good shooters so I was glad to see that one of them actually got it going early.”
Belton also dished out 10 assists as VES, the Division III state champions last year that moved up to D-II this season, moved the ball around the court with ease. STAB scrapped admirably, winning a number of tough loose balls with aggressive play, but the Bishops’ length, speed and pace of play wore down the Saints. Brett Johnson finished with 10 points to lead the Saints. Three other STAB players — Justin Paton, Cameron Paton and Jeff Jones — each scored six points.
Once the Bishops’ shooting onslaught pulled the Saints out of the zone they started the game in, Ifeanyi Onyekaba took over inside. The 6-foot-8 big man finished with 17 points, nine rebounds and five steals.
“I went zone which I normally never do because I knew they had the big guys inside…but I knew they had shooters too,” Kent said. “You’ve got to pick your poison, that’s what I told (my squad). I tried to talk to them (before the game) about getting it into a slow pace, but with length like that and quickness and athleticism it’s hard to do. ”
Former Buckingham star Caleb White, a first team All-Scrimmage Play selection who is now a small forward for the Bishops, finished with 16 points and showed off the same left-handed runner that was a highlight of his game at Buckingham a couple of times during the VES win.
“I’m making progress in my game, getting a lot stronger and getting better at my weaknesses,” White said. “It’s tough to go from where you were the guy and you were the main scorer…it’s getting there, you’ve got to have a positive attitude about it.”
VES’s standout sophomore Anthony Swann had a solid game as well with eight points, seven rebounds, four assists and four blocks.
VES also beat Covenant and Western Albemarle last week in Western’s tip-off tournament.
