WISE — The Pioneers defeated Virginia High 69-63 for the 2022 PVB UVA-Wise tournament championship. In opening round play at the David J. Prior Convocation Center on Wednesday, Lebanon took the first step toward the 2023 crown. Senior Chance Parker poured in a career-high 26 points as the Pioneers handed Ridgeview an 89-62 setback in the Holiday Classic.
“It feels good,” said Parker. “My teammates got me the ball when I was open, and I was able to knock some shots down.”
Caden Boyd and Parker nailed 3-pointers as Lebanon started the game with a 6-0 lead. The Wolfpack then went on an 8-0 run, as the first quarter was tight. With Ridgeview up 14-13, Parker hit back-to-back trifectas, and the Pioneers would never trail again. They were 6-of-8 behind the arc and were up 22-16 after eight minutes of play, with Parker scoring 12 of those points.
“It builds my confidence when I start like that,” he said. “No matter who, when someone can knock down some shots, it gets the energy going for the team and really helps out.”
The Wolfpack couldn’t slow Lebanon down. They made five of their first seven shots in the second frame and, led by Parker, had built a 39-20 advantage by intermission. Was the fast start vital?
“It’s really important,” first-year Lebanon coach Scotty Boyd said. “It’s what we do. We like to shoot 30 or 40 3s a game if we can, but you have to make a good percentage of those, and tonight we did.
“Chance got us off to a good start, he stepped up big. He got us rolling. Chance’s confidence bled over to the other guys. We shot the ball great.”
Parker was 4-of-8, making 50 percent of his 3s. He grabbed three rebounds with two assists and two steals and was on the floor for just over 20 minutes with the lopsided score.
“He has had a big year for us,” commented Boyd. “Chance brings an energy to the court, and his quickness is so important. He can get to the rim and finish. We’re proud of ‘lil bro,’ as he calls himself.”
As usual, Mike Reece again filled out the statistics sheet with eight points, 14 boards, and six assists. Reece only put up four shots and made three of those.
“I told Mike in the locker room, we’re going to find you, don’t worry about the scoring,” Boyd said. “He really controlled the game with his rebounding and outlet passes, getting us into transition.”
Andy Lambert contributed 16 points with four assists. Brody Wess had nine points, four assists, and four steals.
It was the first time the Pioneers had a ‘full deck’ with 11 players on the roster participating as they’d overcome some injuries.
“It was great to have Hunter Musick back,” remarked Boyd. “We’ve dealt with quite a bit to start the year. Hunter, Chance, Andy [Lambert], Toby [Baker] all being hurt at times. It was the first night we’ve been healthy, and I think we showed our potential, and hopefully, we can build off of this.”
Lebanon made over 55 percent of their shots in the game, going 32 for 58 in field goal attempts. They were 13-of-28 on 3s. They will be hard to defeat when they shoot the ball that well.
“When a team shoots like that, gets open looks, they’re tough to beat,” Ridgeview coach Evan McCowan said. “Give it to Lebanon, they made everything tonight. They played hard and hustled; we just have to do a better job on both ends of the court.”
In a bizarre stat, the Wolfpack was 25-of-53, shooting over 47 percent and still lost by 27 points.
“Basketball is like that sometimes,” stated McCowan. “We could have done a better job defensively, and that starts with me. I have to get the guys ready and prepared to do better than they did. Lebanon shot the lights out, but hopefully, we learn from this game, and it makes us better long term.”
Clayton Compton (13 points), Terran Owens (11) and Connor Smith (10) were the offensive leaders for the Wolfpack.
The Pioneers advance to the quarterfinals and will face Shelby Valley, Kentucky.