Top-ranked Norview boys bounce back

NORFOLK

Being the top-ranked team in South Hampton Roads isn't all fun.

Norview knows what it's like. The Pilots took over the top spot this week, then lost to Maury by 19 in their very next game.

With that loss, Norview's nine-game winning streak ended.

Out came the doubters, and the

Pilots could have listened to them. Instead, Norview played inspired basketball Friday and came from behind to defeat No. 7 Granby 56-46 on the Comets' court.

"The guys knew that this was a big win for us," Norview coach Jonathan Wilson said. "In order for us to push ourselves two games up (in first place in the Eastern District standings), we had to get this win here at Granby."

In a game that seesawed for two quarters, Granby had a 28-23 halftime lead. The Comets (13-5, 6-4) held a five-point lead with 6:24 left in the third quarter when Norview stepped it up on defense. Granby missed its next 10 shots, and the Pilots forced four turnovers in the quarter's final six minutes.

That enabled Norview (16-2, 8-2) to chip away at the deficit with a 9-1 run that was helped by reserve Trae'vis Sumler.

"I told him somebody needs to give us a spark because we were flat," Wilson said of Sumler, who turned 17 on Friday. "So I wanted to put somebody in who doesn't play that much."

Sumler turned the ball over on his first touch but then hit a 3-pointer that gave Norview its first lead since three minutes remained in the first quarter. The Pilots, ranked fourth in the state, never trailed again as Granby scored just one point in a seven-minute stretch.

"When he hit the three," Wilson said, "I think it gave us the energy we needed to pick our team up."

The Pilots' Jason Luckie and Rahson Robinson were clutch down the stretch. Luckie scored nine of his 24 points in the fourth quarter, and Robinson scored eight of his 12 in the final quarter.

"People were saying we were ranked too high and that we're not going to be ranked in the state anymore," Robinson said. "We had to go out there and get this win and bounce back from that loss."

Granby, which has lost four of its last eight games, was led by Aubrey Burrus and Willie White, who scored 12 and 11 points, respectively.

Larry Rubama, 757-446-2273,larry.rubama@pilotonline.com