Petersburg rematch with Thomas Dale leads to a Crimson Wave 50-43 victory at home

At the end of practice Monday night, ahead of the game against Thomas Dale Head Coach Ryan Massenburg said it's a very important game and luckily the Petersburg Crimson Wave was able to beat the Knights 50-43.

"They [Dale} are a very well-coached team," Massenburg said.

Petersburg started the game with a Kaymeign Lundy drive and and-one, but Thomas Dale responded with a field goal of their own. Both the Knights and Crimson Wave ha trouble finding a groove on offense with both teams committing too many turnovers in the opening minutes.

But Bernard Fuller got to work under the basket to extend the lead by two, followed by a Chris Fields jumper. Again, Fuller extended the lead by tapping in the ball after a missed field goal took a bounce off the rim making it 9-3.

"Chris and BJ complement each other well," Massenburg said.

Fuller would have 15 points on the night.

But Dale scored on offense by putting up shots over Petersburg defenders. However, the offense could not find a grove because of the seven turnovers in the first quarter due to either missed passes or misplaced feet on the line.

Fields able to sky-hook to make it 11-5. Dale responded with an easy layup to cut it 11-7. In the final seconds of the quarter, Tylik Lawerence laid in a basket to make it 13-7.

Coming out of the second quarter Dale had a bit more energy that helped out pressure on Petersburg guards. Petersburg had to run through offensive plays a few times to find an open look because of the defense that the Knights were bringing.

"They are a very disciplined team," said Massenburg.

But once the ball was inside the paint Fuller either laid the ball in or tip it in. Dale, however, would respond with a jumper of their own, an early sign they were heating up.

Petersburg had their slow moments to react on offense to get any loose balls because of the pressure they responded to Dale with. The Wave played tight defense to try and force Dale to turn the ball over. If it was close to a turnover Lundy dove for the loose ball like a penguin sliding on ice.

With squads trading points and takes on the floor, Petersburg looked for a chance to take over and put the Knights away early. At the top of the key, Fields dribbled off a steal and found a streaking CJ Claiborne for an easy layup; 17-15.

But Claiborne was heating up. From the corner, he swished a field goal to make it 20-15. Dale responded with a field goal of their own but a bigs battle in the closing seconds of the half was won by Fields.

22-18 Petersburg at the half.

The third quarter opened with a Dale layup to cut the deficit by two. However, Dale tied it at 22's because of a driving layup and could not get the and-one. Takes to the basket would continue for the Knights as it would for Petersburg but somehow they could not get over the hump and recapture the lead.

"We got to make our free throws," said Massenburg.

Petersburg, again, could not capitalize on scoring opportunities from the free-throw line, especially in the third quarter where they had many chances to do it. They were 8-19 from the line. Another reason why it was difficult to cut the deficit and take over was that Dale caught fire.

The defense that Petersburg is running is a shell. It allows players to keep the ball at the perimeter and allow players to be on the take since there could be a lot of bodies in one space. Dale adapted to this offensive set and scored from the arc.

With the back and forth from Dale's shooting and Petersburg layups, the point margin was nine. Sometimes it is difficult to take over and win, especially when the big points from behind the arc are taking over.

But the Wave did not give up because Lawerence knocked down a bank shot to cut it to seven. But Petersburg missed free throws as the Knights kept shooting. A steal by Lundy to go coast to coast helped Petersburg inch closer but a Dale field goal made it 37-31 going into the fourth quarter.

The fourth quarter opened with a Jamari Garnett battle on the block to make it 37-33. He was found again for an easy layup to make it 37-35. Fuller laid in a shot to tie the game at 37's. A Fields skyhook help the Wave recapture the lead at 39-37.

While the energy crept back into the game, what set it off was a field goal from the top of the arc from Claiborne shooting over a defender. It was 42-37 and the Wave found new life.

Now it was crunch time for Dale. While they still had shots going in, they had no choice but to foul Petersburg for a chance to get the ball back. However, Petersburg made some free throws from the line and win at home in a 50-43 victory.

Their next game is against Dinwiddie on Friday night.

Zoe Collins Rath (she/her/hers) is a sports and education reporter for the Progress-Index. For times email her at ZCollinsRath@gannett.com or follow her on Twitter @zoe_jordan99.

This article originally appeared on The Progress-Index: Petersburg Crimson Wave wins 50-43 against Thomas Dale in the first rematch game of the season.