Gators rally past Wingfield

Published 11:40 am Wednesday, November 9, 2011

With a horde of young and inexperienced — but talented — players, the Vicksburg Gators are sure to mix moments of fun with moments of pure frustration this season.

Heck, they did that in the span of a few minutes on Tuesday night alone.

De’Angelo Richardson drilled a 3-pointer with one second left in the fourth quarter to cap a comeback from a 19-point deficit, then he hit another in overtime to spark a game-deciding run as the Gators rallied to beat Wingfield 56-51.

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“Those kids have got heart,” Vicksburg coach Dellie C. Robinson said. “This is going to be huge for our confidence. These kids believe they can win. I always tell them they just have to weather the storm. Tonight was a storm, and they weathered the storm.”

It was a night of extremes for the Gators (2-0). They were 10-for-42 from the field through the first three quarters and trailed 44-29 heading into the final period. The deficit had been 19 points, 40-21, with three minutes to go in the third.

Then they settled down, ratcheted up the defensive pressure and took advantage of a near-total meltdown by Wingfield. Using a full-court press for the entire fourth quarter, Vicksburg forced the Falcons into six turnovers and held them to 1-of-7 shooting from the field.

A layup by Aubrey Humphrey with 1:15 to go accounted for Wingfield’s only points of the fourth quarter. Vicksburg outscored the Falcons 17-2.

“We just didn’t give up,” said Vicksburg point guard Edward Davis, who had eight points, five steals and four rebounds. “Everybody on the team is quick, so we kept it going.”

It took the Gators until the final frantic seconds to complete the comeback, though.

Richardson missed a 3-pointer from the right corner with about 10 seconds left. Tre’Darius Carter and Davis each missed a follow-up. Davis grabbed Vicksburg’s third offensive rebound of the sequence and passed to Richardson, who sank the game-tying 3 from the same spot he had missed from a few seconds earlier.

In overtime, Richardson buried a trey from the left side to put the Gators ahead 51-49 with just over two minutes to go. Davis then came up with a pair of steals that were each converted into layups, giving VHS a quick 7-0 run that turned a one-point deficit into a 55-49 lead with 1:49 remaining.

Richardson finished with 13 points and seven rebounds. Romeo Carter had 12 points and Tre’Darius Carter had eight points, 11 rebounds and three blocked shots.

Chris Steverson and Antwan Randle led Wingfield with 12 points apiece.