The Albemarle boys basketball team had already assured itself of a position in regional competition, but following the act of last year’s team that reached the state semifinals, it still had unfinished business.
Playing for a first-round bye in the upcoming Region 5A North tournament, Albemarle delivered with a 55-44 win over visiting Patrick Henry-Roanoke Friday night.
Albemarle got 15 points apiece from Austin Katstra and J’Quan Anderson and played physical, defensive basketball to pull away for the win, securing its second consecutive Conference 16 title.
Katstra was held scoreless for most of the first half, but had back-to-back dunks to help Albemarle turn a five-point lead with 3:21 to go into an 11-point one at halftime.
AHS got an early spark from Maxx Jarman who hit two three-pointers in the first quarter, one from each corner. The second one gave Albemarle a 10-7 lead and they never trailed again.
“That’s my go-to spot for threes, the corners.” Jarman said.
Katstra’s first dunk came off an inbounds play under the basket from Anderson, and his second came two possessions later on a baseline drive over two Patrick Henry defenders. The Albemarle defense clamped down as well, allowing Patrick Henry just two points the rest of the half to take a 24-13 lead at the half.
“This was obviously a very physical game,” Albemarle head coach Greg Maynard said. “We played hard, they played hard, we just made a couple more plays than they did. You have to learn how to play all styles of basketball when you get to the playoffs.”
The second half began in strange fashion as Albemarle was assessed a technical foul for dunking during halftime warmups. PH sank one of the free throws and got a three from Noah Woody to open the frame, but Albemarle responded with a 7-0 burst to keep itself comfortably in front. Katstra calmly swished a three-pointer with a minute to go in the third to give Albemarle a 40-26 advantage heading into the final period.
Patrick Henry kept within striking distance in the fourth quarter, getting the deficit into single digits yet again, but AHS sealed the victory at the free throw line down the stretch, making 11 free throws in the fourth quarter alone.
“We knew they would come at us,” Maynard said. “We beat them by 19 back in the second game of the season, that was way in the past. That was more of a finesse game, while this was a lot more physical. They played hard.”
Dom Joyce led Patrick Henry with a game-high 20 points. Drew Harris added nine for the Patriots.
“Joyce is a scorer,” Maynard said. “Once he gets going to the left, he’s tough to stop.”
Albemarle will host a regional quarterfinal game Tuesday night as it looks to return to the state tournament.
“Knowing our seniors are leaving this year, it’d be good to send them out with a state ring on their fingers.” Jarman said.
