Clover's boys' basketball team finishes up strong to edge Northwestern

CLOVER -- Northwestern dictated the pace for three quarters Tuesday night. Clover got the game running at a speed more to its liking in the final stanza.

The frantic, full-court pressure by Clover made the Trojans buckle down the stretch. The Blue Eagles erased an 8-point deficit in the final 1:20 to win 46-45.

Clover trailed 45-44 with 15.1 seconds left. The Blue Eagles inbounded the ball underneath the Northwestern goal, and Chris Lindsay sped upcourt, cutting to his left as he crossed the center-court stripe.

Lindsay passed to Trenton Berry on the wing. Berry drove to the foul line and dished to A.J. Williams for an open layup with 2.1 seconds to go.

Northwestern tried a long pass, but failed to get a shot off as time expired.

"I think YMCA teams could press us and beat us," Trojans coach Mike Gossett said. "Credit to Clover. They did a good job and deserved to win."

Northwestern led 33-24 when Chris Belton converted a steal into a breakaway dunk to start the fourth quarter. Clover bounced right back with a Lindsay 3-pointer, free throws by Cody Bauer and Alexander Wylie and a driving basket by R.J. Phillips.

The Trojans regained an 8-point advantage at 42-34 when Belton drove the baseline to hammer home the second of two dunks on the night, then scored again the next time down the court.

Belton finished with a game-high 16 points. Cordarrelle Patterson scored 11 and had two visiting crowd-pleasing dunks.

Berry hit a big 3-pointer after Cody Bauer and Josh Clawson missed from beyond the arc on the previous two possessions.

Berry converted a steal into a driving layup to make it 42-40 with 1:11 left.

After a Northwestern free throw made it a three-point game, Wylie drove the lane to score. Lindsay stole a pass on the Trojans' next possession and fed Phillips for a go-ahead bucket.

Clover led 44-43 with 49 ticks on the clock.

Northwestern came right back. Labris Adams got into the lane and put up a shot that bounced off the iron. Belton soared in for the tip-in.

That set the stage for Clover's final play.

Berry, a 5-8 guard is a first-year player for Clover coach Dudley Lybrand. His family moved to Clover from Virginia Beach, Va., in time for him to play football. He was late joining the basketball team with the football team wrapping up its season.

He is just getting into his rhythm. Lybrand said Berry is probably his best shooter -- high praise for the new kid on a team full of shooters.

The final play was designed to go to Berry for a shot or a drive to the basket.

"Players make plays," Lybrand said of Berry.

"I was just trying to make a play. It was just good ball movement," Berry said.

He finished with six points, all in the fourth quarter, and the game-winning assist.

Clover (15-5, 3-4 Region 3-AAAA) needed the win, especially after a letting one get away Friday night in an overtime loss at Fort Mill. Wylie paced the Blue Eagles with 12 points Tuesday, with Lindsay adding 9.

Northwestern (14-7, 5-2 Region 3-AAAA) played its patient offense for three quarters. The deliberate pace resulted in 16 of 20 field goals being scored in the paint.

"(Northwestern) turned the ball over and took some ill-advised shots," Lybrand said. "We had some kids come off the bench and make a few plays."

This story was originally published February 4, 2009 at 12:54 AM with the headline "Clover's boys' basketball team finishes up strong to edge Northwestern."