Hemsley the Hero for Asheville
ASHEVILLE, N.C., Jan. 4 -- Johnny Hemsley's three-point field goal with eight seconds remaining in the fourth period lifted the Asheville Altitude to 86-85 victory over the Roanoke Dazzle on Friday night.
With the win, the Altitude improved to 14-9 on the season, while the Dazzle fell to 9-14.
"I knew time was running out when I got the ball," said Hemsley. "I just turned and shot it, but I didn't expect it to bounce as high as it did off the rim. I was glad it fell through the hoop and I'm glad we won."
Asheville, winner of 10 of its last 13 games, trailed by 15 points (78-63) with 6:59 left in the fourth period before mounting a 11-4 run to cut the Roanoke deficit to two points at 78-74.
Roanoke guard Andre McCollum halted the Asheville run, when he scored on a 10-foot jumper to push the lead back up to six points at 80-74 with 4:04 remaining in the period.
With 2:30 left in the fourth period and Roanoke clinging to a four point lead at 81-77, Altitude forward Chris Carrawell let fly his only three-pointer of the game to close the score to 81-80. The two teams would exchange baskets over the next few possessions, setting the stage for Hemsley's game-winning basket.
Roanoke would have one last shot at winning the game, but McCollum's first shot attempt was blocked by Carrawell and his second bounced off the back rim.
Asheville was led in scoring by Paul Grant with 24 points, followed by Hemsley with 20 points. Rusty LaRue and Carrawell each chipped in with 11 points, including seven and six assists respectively.
Roanoke was led in scoring by Arie Griffin and Andre McCollum. Griffin scored 27 points, including 6-of-7 from the three-point line, while McCollum scored 22 points, with a game high eight assists.
