Hopewell News

Hopewell’s march back to the solid play that coach Reggie Simon saw at the beginning of the season continued on Tuesday with a 71-55 victory over Dinwiddie in the quarterfinals round of the Central District tournament.
David Rose scored 21 points and Pedro Berrios had a double-double with 15 points and 11 rebounds in the win for the fourth seed.
“Even though it was not a pretty game, it was a game which we maintained through out,” Simon said. “We got an early lead and we were able to maintain that lead. I cautioned the guys ... it’s win or go home. Dinwiddie was coming to play like we were coming to play.”
The Blue Devils jumped out to a quick lead behind the effects of leading scorers David Rose and Pedro Berrios. A quick bucket by Berrios and two straight from Rose gave Hopewell a 7-0 lead. The duo combined for 14 of Hopewell’s 19 first-quarter points. While the game’s “home team” jumped out to the quick lead, Dinwiddie was able to fight back and cut the lead to two following a pair of Chris Hall free throws with 1:31 remaining in the quarter.
As Simon had hoped, Hopewell was able to maintain when the going got tough. The Blue Devils went on a 16-5 run over the remains of the first quarter and into the second quarter to open up a double-digit lead. When the Generals began to whittle away at that lead at times during second and third quarter, Simon reminded his team of the basics.
“I just told the guys make sure we slow down, take care of the ball and take good shots ... we’re playing like there’s a shot clock out there,” he said. “We were moving to fast.”
The Blue Devils went in to halftime with a 34-23 lead and led by no less than 10 points the rest of the game.
Perhaps one of the games biggest story lines was the absence of David Gholson from the starting lineup. After missing the last part of the season because of suspension, Gholson’s return to the starting five has not quite happened. However, his play off the bench provided a big spark for the Blue Devils down the stretch run. The junior guard provided 11 points, six assists and three steals, including eight of the final 10 Hopewell points.
“Him coming off the bench and brining energy and bringing energy along with Justin Webb and DeQuante’ Taylor ... Him coming off the bench along with those guys really gave us a lift so we could sustain,” Simon said.
Dinwiddie was led by Lamonte Fields who scored 19 points. While the game belonged to Hopewell, Fields had arguably the game’s most exciting play. With 2:45 remaining in the game and the Generals trailing by 14, Fields drove the lane to find Taylor ready to take a charge. Instead of pulling up for a short jumper or attempting to move around him, Fields decided to go right at him. The forward leaped, cocked the ball back and threw down a thunderous dunk that drew raved reviews from Dinwiddie and Hopewell fans alike. Instead of drawing the charge, Taylor was called for a block. However, any momentum that Dinwiddie could have possibly built from the play was quickly destroyed as the Blue Devils proceeded to go on an 11-2 run over the next 1:30 to put the game on ice.
McKindley King also found double figures for Hopewell, netting 13 points including one of two Hopewell 3-pointers. For Dinwiddie, Michael Jones added 11 points.

Box Score

Dinwiddie 12 11 14 18 55
Hopewell. 19 15 16 21 71
Dinwiddie: Sturdivant 2, Gardner 5, Gregory 2, Barksdale 4, Hawkins 1, Parham 7, Jones 11, Fields 19, White 2, Tucker 0, Nunnally 0, Hall 2
Hopewell: Reeves 2, Gholson 11, Webb 6, Berrios 15, Dam. Rose 0, M. King 13, Dav. Rose 21, Taylor 3, Smith 0, A. King 0, Jones 0