AAA National Boys
Jones Lifts Mt. Vernon To OT Win
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Saturday, February 7, 2009
The sweat-soaked dreads dancing on his head were the only visible part of Skylar Jones's body as he jumped up and down within a group of his Mount Vernon teammates following his winning shot in a 63-62 overtime victory at Stuart last night.
Jones, who finished with a game-high 24 points, took an off-balance feed from teammate Brian Green and hit an awkward body-contorting shot that helped the Majors clinch the top seed in the upcoming Virginia AAA National District tournament.
"We never stopped believing," said Jones, a 6-foot-3 junior who scored 17 points after halftime -- including four in overtime -- to help the Majors fight back from a 33-28 halftime deficit.
No. 20 Mount Vernon also rallied from a five-point deficit in the final 53 seconds of overtime on an acrobatic layup by junior guard Robert Smith, a pair of free throws by Robert Coleman and Jones's game winner.
The Majors (16-4, 11-0) extended their winning streak to 14 and dropped the Raiders (15-4, 7-3) for the second time this season on a late bucket.
In a 58-56 victory last month, Mount Vernon's Kyle Ricks -- a 6-5 senior forward -- hit a game-winning layup with less than three seconds left. This time, Ricks was unavailable because he was serving a mandatory one-game suspension following an ejection from a game this week.
Stuart attacked the paint, getting 17 points from 6-4 senior forward Raymond Watson and 5-10 senior guard Trey Ford, who hit a variety of shots in the lane en route to his 22 points.
Mount Vernon, which started the season 2-4 and lost four straight to Veritas Academy, No. 7 T.C. Williams, Hayfield and Hylton, has since streaked through 14 straight opponents and clinched the district's top seed and accompanying first-round bye. By rule, the Majors will have at least a No. 2 seed in the Virginia AAA Northern Region tournament.
"We're going to try to keep it going," Mount Vernon Coach Alfonso Smith said. "As we get closer to the end of the regular season, we're going to stop talking about the streak because in the postseason everyone starts at 0-0."
No. 20 Mount Vernon 63, Stuart 62 An Empty Feeling: The Majors played the final four minutes of Tuesday's 78-69 victory over Wakefield in a gymnasium closed to spectators following a melee that did not involve any players, according to Mount Vernon Coach Alfonso Smith. Raiders Pride: Seven Raiders scored in last night's game.
