SportsWeek
Also Community, Religion and Classifieds February s, 2015
East Forsyth victorious in tug-of-war
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Photos by Charles E. Leftwich, Jr
East Forsyth's Brandon Tate (23) takes the ball to the basket.
BY CRAIG T. GREENLEE
FOR THE CHRONICLE
Northwest Guilford and East Forsyth engaged in a
tug-of-war that lasted for four quarters. This nail-biting
contest, which was tied at least five times during the
second half, was not decided until the final minutes.
When the dust finally settled, it was East Forsyth
who came out on top with a 70-66 victory in junior var
sity basketball on Tuesday, Jan. 27. Coming down the
stretch, the Eagles hit enough free throws and at criti
cal times, played well enough defensively, to notch
their seventh win in a row.
"On defense, we were lazy at times and we gave
up far too many easy baskets on back-door cuts," said
Coach Rodney Minor of East Forsyth. "But when it
came right down to it, everybody pulled together and
grinded it out. Even though they faced some adversity,
they showed a lot of resiliency and mental toughness."
East Forsyth (12-4, 4-0 Piedmont Triad
Conference) rallied from a five-point deficit to tie the
^ See East Forsyth on B2
Curtis Coleman of East
Forsyth gets ready to shoot a
free throw.
Winston-Salem Prep
team eyes perfection
BY CRAIG T. GREENLEE
FOR THE CHRONICLE
When it comes to junior varsity basketball in
this part of the state, the beat goes on for
Winston-Salem Prep. With three games left to
play in the regular season, the Phoenix has its
eyeballs fixated on perfection.
So far, the Lash-Chronicle Classic champi
ons have managed to side-step complacency.
Even so, it remains to be seen if arrogance will
eventually inhabit the minds of Prep's players
between now and the end of the regular season on
Feb. 10.
The Phoenix (16-0, 12-0 Northwest 1-A
Conference) has road dates at Mount Airy and
Atkins and will close out the season at home
against North Stokes.
Coach Bill Tibbs readily admits that it's
becoming more difficult for him to find ways to
keep his team fully motivated. Up to now, he's
been able to push all the right buttons at the right
times to get the desired results. Intense practices,
he explained, have gone a long way to help keep
his players humble in spite of their success.
"In practice, we're always looking for little
things that will help bring everybody back down
to earth," said Tibbs. "Running has a way of
changing mindsets and attitudes. But it's not run
ning just for the sake of it. When players miss
free throws and lay-ups, they know they're going
to run. If they don't hustle, box-out, rebound and
defend with intensity, they will run. The same
goes for bad body language and mouthing off.
We've established a culture here which demands
that we win with class."
There's nothing secretive about the Prep's
formula for winning. Share the ball on offense,
go all-out on defense, and compete with con
trolled intensity. It also helps that Tibbs' crew has
a collective work ethic that keeps them primed
and focused.
"From day one, this group has bought into
everything I've told them," said Tibbs. "Plus, they
want to be in the gym all the time. They're defi
nitely not afraid of hard work."
Preo's iavvee squad has its share of skilled
Photo by Charles E. Leftwich, Jr.
See ws Prep on B2 Justin Carter makes a strong move inside the lane.
First African-American woman
men's golf coach to speak in Triad
SPECIAL TO THE CHRONICLE
Can tana Sparks, an African-American
woman trailblazing golfer, will come to
the Triad for the Brunson Invitational
Golf Scholarship Fund.
Sparks is a trailblazing golfer from the
1980s and the first African-American
woman to coach a men's NCAA golf
team.
In honor of Black History Month, she
will be the honorary guest Feb. 21 at
Proctor Hall at N.C A&T State University
from 4-6 p.m.
Cantana, who was honored with the
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The Rough" in 2014, will be speaking on behalf of the
Brunson Invitational Golf Scholarship Fund.
The Brunson Invitational
Scholarship Fund is a registered nonprof
it organization that exposes inner city
youth to the game of golf. Youth that
apply for this scholarship must meet aca
demic guidelines and mostly plan to
attend a historical black college or uni
versity.
Middle age, high school and college
students can attend this event at no
charee. Colleee students must present an
ID."
A private dinner will be held for
sponsors with Coach Starks at Ruth's
Chris Steakhouse in Greensboro.
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founder Rodney Brunson 336-457-2372 or at brun
songolfinvitation@gmail.com.
Cantana Sparks
Winston-Salem
resident coaches
undefeated
Livingstone
women
BY CRAIG T. GREENLEE
FOR THE CHRONICLE
A look back at recent seasons tells you much about the
women's basketball program at Livingstone College. The
Lady Blue Bears were at or near the bottom of the stack in
the CIAA. For this season, though, it's a totally different
story line.
Livingstone, ranked 11th in the USA Today Division II
Coach's Poll
on Jan. 3D, is
undeniably
the surprise
team of 2014
15. The past
two seasons
haven't been
kind: The pro
gram had a
woeful .384
winning per
centage. At
the start of
February,
Livingstone
was still unde
feated at 20-0
overall and
11-0 CIAA. Coach Anita Howard watches the
Enter first- action from sidelines.
year coach
Anita Howard, who produced a similar quick turnaround
during her two-year stay at Salem College. At Salem, a
Division III program, Howard transformed a struggling
program from being the bottom-feeder of the Great South
Athletic Conference, to being the conference champ that
earned a NCAA Tournament bid.
With less than a month left in the regular season,
there's no way to determine if Livingstone will have that
same level of success so soon. What is apparent is that the
Lady Blue Bears are the real deal. There's no denying that
Howard is a prime factor in the program's meteoric rise.
Nobody in the CIAA saw this coming. In the pre-sea
son polls and predictions, Livingstone was picked to finish
last in the six-team Southern Division.
, "We're starting at the bottom and working our way to
the top," said Howard, who started her college coaching
career at Winston-Salem State in 2006. "These young
ladies have bonded at the right time. They're mentally
tough and they go hard day in and day out. That's why
we're blessed to be where we are today."
During Howard's career, defense has become the hall
mark of her teams. At Salem, the Spirits ranked among the
national leaders in Division III in several categories. While
the Blue Bears haven't quite reached that level yet, there
has been marked improvement. Howard believes in the
grit factor. That means boxing out for rebounds, not miss
ing defensive assignments, and being willing to dive on
the floor for loose balls.
"Playing tough defense is about giving 100 percent
effort," said Howard, who was voted Conference Player of
the Year during her college-playing days at Fort Valley
State and Armstrong Atlantic State. "It doesn't take talent
and skills. There's no such thing as being pretty on
defense. It's getting in the face of opponents, yelling, hol
lering and making the offense feel uncomfortable."
One factor not to be forgotten about the revamped ver
sion of Livingstone is Howard's familiarity with the style
of play in the CIAA. After serving in key assistant posi
Stt Coach on B2
Photos by Charles E. Leftwich. Jr.