HIGH POINT - If you want to run with Andrews, you better be prepared for a track meet. With a seasoned starting five and plenty of depth, the Red Raiders have the talent to run just about any team.
Sun Valley found that out the hard way in Monday's first round of the 3-A West playoffs. The Spartans tried to stay with Andrews, but the Red Raiders used runs in the second and third quarters to come away with a 65-44 win over the Spartans.
"Early on, we didn't get after like we usually do," said Andrews coach James Able. "I don't know if it was because it was a Monday or what. But that second group came in and really picked things up for us and got us going."
Andrews (22-4) stepped up the tempo late in the first quarter, using a combination of a full-court trap and a collapsing man-to-man defense to force turnovers and score fast-break baskets. The Red Raiders' Corban Collins scored seven points to help Andrews sprint to an 18-7 lead after one quarter.
The Red Raiders extended that lead to 31-12 with a 13-5 run to start the second quarter. Three-pointers by Jordan Reid and Tony Washington fueled the run.
But the Spartans weren't afraid to run with the Red Raiders and used fast break points to cut the lead to 31-20. Andrews closed the quarter by scoring the last three points and taking a 34-20 lead at the break
"Usually we keep rolling once we have it going like that, but we let up," Able said. "You can't do that right now, this late in the season. A lot of that was attributed to them. They kept playing hard and attacking the basket."
But the Red Raiders dominated again in the third quarter behind a suffocating defense and the hot-shooting of Terry Biler. Biler, who finished with a team-high 15 points, used a mid-range jump shot and low-post moves to score 11 points in the quarter and help Andrews take a 54-33 lead into the fourth quarter.
"Terry just killed them with that high-post," Able said. "Usually teams guard that, but they put such an emphasis on Charles (Goodwin) down low, that Terry was open and hit a bunch of those shots. I think it was four or five."
The Spartans may have been better served backing off Goodwin a little. Goodwin was nursing a sprained knee and only scored four points. Able said the injury isn't serious, but Goodwin is still trying to get used to playing with it.
"He tweaked his knee last week," Able said. "He wasn't his dominating self. It's all in his head right now. We've got to get him to let loose."
The Red Raiders will play at home again Wednesday night against the winner of the Waxhaw Marvin Ridge-Southeast Guilford game.
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