‘March Madness’ comes early for Cyclones

Ask most coaches and they’ll tell you how critical momentum is, especially heading into the postseason.

“The intensity jumps a litter higher come tournament time,” EVHS coach Walter Wright said. “Momentum is huge right now because it gives the guys confidence and the motivation to know you can win even if you play fairly bad.”

If momentum and confidence are big factors late in the season, Eastern View should be feeling pretty good after winning seven of its last eight games.

After beginning January with consecutive Battlefield District losses, the Cyclones put together a six-game win streak that lasted until they lost to Courtland on Feb. 6.

“Momentum is the key right now,” said Wright, who took over at EVHS after Eugene Logan resigned before the season began. “We just have to continue to practice hard, and hopefully those seven wins will carry over into the tournament.”

With only three underclassmen on the roster, the Cyclones (13-7 overall, 7-4 in the district) have been blessed with plenty of experience, and Wright said it has shown.

“We’ve relied heavily on our seniors this year,” the rookie head coach said. “And they came through with leadership on and off the court. Senior leadership is a key because it gives the other guys someone to look up to on the court.”

Senior guard Mo Safren —who is averaging 17 points a game — has led the Cyclones offensively, and senior Stevie Strother has been the team’s go-to guy on defense, averaging around four steals a game.

“Mo brings intensity and hustle to the team,” Wright said. “And it’s great to have a guy like Stevie that can put pressure on the ball from the start.”

Seniors Blake Smith, Andrew Hoffman and Kevin Young — as well as sophomores Drayton Shanks and Bilial Williams — have also been pivotal to the Cyclones’ success, but the return of 6-foot-5-inch Roger Davis may be what puts the team over the top, according to Wright.

“You can tell that with Roger in there, teams are hesitant offensively,” he said. “Before he came back, nobody was intimidated when they came into the paint, but now nobody is going to come in and get an easy layup.”

After missing all of football season and much of basketball season due to academic ineligibility, Davis returned to the court in the Cyclones’ win over Louisa Jan. 4, and the team has won four out of five game since.

Davis also experienced legal troubles in connection with a day laborer’s alleged mugging in Jan. 2008.

“It killed me not being able to play with the guys I’ve been playing with for the longest time,” said Davis, a senior. “I know I could have been a help to them this year. The worst part is feeling like I let my teammates down.”

The Cyclones play their final regular season game tonight when they travel to Spotsylvania, but Eastern View’s postseason ticket has already been punched.

Courtland has a firm grasp on the Battlefield’s top spot, but Eastern View is sitting comfortably in second place — which guarantees the Cyclones will host a district tournament game Monday night.

Some may be surprised that a team in its first year of existence is having so much success, but not Wright.

“I was expecting to win from the beginning,” he said. “I heard a lot of talk around the community about people expecting us to go .500 or just win a couple games, but that’s not the mentality I have.”