The Marshall Statesmen proved to be kryptonite for the Yorktown Patriots boys basketball squad this season.
If not for Marshall, Yorktown would have gone undefeated in the Liberty District regular-season play, then might have won the league’s postseason high-school tournament, as well.
But that wasn’t to be. Yorktown finished 12-3 against Liberty opponents. All three losses were close setbacks against top-seed Marshall, including 45-38 and 55-50 defeats in the regular season.
The most recent defeat was by a 56-46 score in the tournament’s final the night of Feb. 20 on the Statesmen’s home floor. Yorktown (20-6 overall) was the second seed.
The district-tourney runner-up finish was Yorktown’s highest since winning the title in 2020 after knocking off a top seed — South Lakes — in that championship game.
In the district-tournament final, Yorktown never led. Marshall was leading 18-10 at the end of the first period and 27-22 at halftime. Yorktown tied the score at 30 in the third period, but trailed 44-34 at quarter’s end.
“We came out a little slow at the beginning, then we switched back from a zone to man defense and that helped us get closer,” Yorktown guard Walton Butler told ARLnow.
Yorktown rallied in the fourth, getting as close as 48-46 with four minutes to play. The Statesmen then scored the game’s last eight points as the Patriots missed their final six shots, two getting blocked.
Also during that stretch, Yorktown was whistled for an illegal-screen violation that nullified a three-pointer by Jake Coulam.
“Marshall ran their plays and got some easy baskets at the end,” Butler said.
Coulam led Yorktown in scoring with 18 points. Butler scored seven, Garrett Schmelling and Ozan Teri-Rowe (two three-pointers) six each and Alex Randisi five.
“We battled and our guys stepped up to the challenge,” Yorktown coach Joe Keimig said. “It took us a while to get going, but then we were playing hard, had some momentum and were not afraid.”
Yorktown was missing key players James Davis, Charlie Ganbaatar and Garon Carcillo, who were either sick or injured and did not play.
“It was kind of a scramble without those guys, but others played well in their place,” Butler said.
Added Coulam: “We really had nothing to lose in the game with all of those guys missing. We still had a chance.”
A number of Yorktown players ran into foul trouble, adding to the team’s woes.
“At one time we had a lineup out there that hadn’t played together at all, not even in practice,” Kemig said.
The Patriots were 2-1 in the tournament, defeating the seventh-seed Washington-Liberty Generals, 61-51, in the first round, then downing the No. 6 seed Herndon Hornets, 62-54, in the semifinals. Both of those games were at Yorktown.
Against W-L, the close game was tied at 37 entering the fourth quarter. The Patriots surged ahead by scoring the first nine points of that final period and were ahead the rest of the way.
Butler led Yorktown in scoring with 13 points. He scored five in the final quarter, including a three-pointer. Garon Carcillo made two three-pointers in the fourth, Coulam scored four points and had a key assist in the stanza and Sam Roosa made three foul shots with Schmelling having a basket.
The score was tied at 10 after the first quarter and Yorktown led 21-19 at halftime. Also, Carcillo scored 12 and Coulam 11.
Yorktown was 3-0 against Washington-Liberty (10-13) this season.
Against Herndon, Yorktown led 33-20 at halftime and 45-36 after three quarters. Coulam had 22 points and Carcillo 18.
The 20-win season is the second straight and just the second in school history for Yorktown.
Next for Yorktown is the 6D North Region tournament. The Patriots host the Oakton Cougars in a first-round game at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 24. If Yorktown wins that game the 21st victory will be a single-season program record.
“Oakton plays a lot of zone and they take a lot of three-point shots,” Coulam said. “We have to hit our shots and, on defense, guard their shooters.”
* The No. 4 seeded Wakefield Warriors (13-10) lost to the visiting and fifth-seed Langley Saxons, 49-41, in a first-round game of the district tournament.
NOTE: At the end of the regular season, Yorktown was ranked 10th in Class 6 in a state-wide poll compiled by the boys Basketball Coaches Association. Marshall was seventh in that ranking.
