They had to wait 29 minutes for the dunk and had to hold their breath that long before West, the preseason No.-1 ranked 3A team in the state, got the victory.

The Falcons did not roll. And it wasn’t easy. Drew Mathews’ Salisbury squad scrapped and clawed until the final minutes in a 85-73 West Rowan win.

“What I was worried about was us playing not to lose,” said West coach Mike Gurley. “We have got to play to win. We won’t win them all but we’ve got to play like that.”

Mathews’ two seniors, Thad Pryor and Terry Johnson made a statement right off the bat. Pryor drove for the game’s first two points and Johnson drained a three-pointer for a 5-2 lead. The vaunted Gurley press wasn’t working its usual magic either against slick floor leader Boo Blount.

“I was impressed with my kids,” said Mathews. “We did a lot of good things.”

Still West led 27-16 with six minutes remaining in the second quarter and West was beginning to look like Parade All-Americans.

Then, the parade to the foul line began that threw the Falcons out of kilter.

Donte Minter, West’s 6-7 sophomore, went to the bench after his second and third fouls came four seconds apart. Salisbury went on an 18-6 tear to actually take the lead 34-33 on junior Randall Jones’ long three-pointer.

“Let me tell you something, that was no surprise to me,” Gurley said. “I heard people at school and in the community talking about how we’re supposed to be good and Salisbury isn’t supposed to be good. Hey, I got news for ‘em. Salisbury is good.”

But each time Salisbury would make a run, it seemed like the Falcons would wake up.

“When they took the lead, we got fired up again,” Gurley said. “It was like something in our head went ‘Ding’ ”

Terris Sifford immediately hit a jumper in the lane to regain the lead and then drove the baseline for two more. When his steal led to a Tim Mauldin basket, West’s lead was back to five by halftime.

Mathews was right where he wanted to be.

“Itold them at halftime to just relax,” he said. “Once we had confidence, we did some good things.”

Behind Jones (“He’s going to be a nice player,” Mathews said), Pryor and Johnson, Salisbury stayed within striking distance in the third quarter. Sherrill and Minter were shackled with foul trouble and Gurley needed someone to step up.

It turned out to be 6-6 senior Frankie Williams, who has had trouble with consistency during his career.

Perhaps those days are over. In the third, he hit a turnaround leaner, a baseline jumper and took a lob from Scooter Dalton for an impressive lay-in. It helped West cling to a 58-54 margin going into the final eight minutes.

“You could say it kind of fell on my shoulders,” Williams said. “As a senior, I had to take over.”

“Frankie was wonderful,” Gurley said of Williams’s 17-point, eight-rebound night. “His desire to go after rebounds was the key. We need our other guys to do that.”

Williams’ long baseline jumper gave West a 60-52 lead but again, the Hornets wouldn’t wilt. With 4:59 left and West up 66-59, Sherrill came off the bench with four fouls and the N.C. State recruit took matters into his own hands.

Sherrill hit two free throws. and after a three-point play by Dalton, he pulled up in the lane for a runner. He hit a free throw. And then, with 3:22 remaining, he took off on a high-flying slam that brought the packed house to its feet. He immediately stole the ball, hit a reverse layup that turned into a three-point play.

Just like that, West’s lead had grown to 79-59 and Sherrill’s 10-point explosion had given him 24 for the game.

It seemed like the only sequence that there wasn’t whistles blowing. A total of 61 fouls were called and 81 free throws were taken, slowing the game to a snail’s pace.

“There was no rhythm,” Gurley said.

Asked what he thought of the foul-fest, Mathews laughed. “You ought to see our practices. I like a physical game. You find out whose tough and who’s not.”

In the end, both coaches went home happy with their opener. West had a win and Salisbury proved it’s going to get more than a few.

“We did a lot of good things,” Mathews said. “It’s something we can build on.”

“My wife is happy,” Gurley joked, “because Thanksgiving will be much more pleasant.”

n

NOTES: Minter finished with 14 points, nine rebounds and five blocked shots. ... Sifford scored 11 and Dalton nine. ... Salisbury placed four in double figures, led by Blount with 17. Johnson had 15, Jones 11 and Pryor 10. ... West hit 26-of-45 from the line while Salisbury was 23-of-36. ... Sherrill had just nine points at halftime. ... Salisbury jumps right back into action tonight when it hosts Concord. ... West will play North Rowan in an early season county showdown next Tuesday at West.

SALISBURY (53) — B. Blount 17, Johnson 15, Jones 11, Pryor 10, Drye 5, Daugherty 5, Blanton 3, Speigner 3, J.Johnson 2, Leonard 2.

WEST ROWAN (85) — Sherrill 24, Williams 17, Minter 14, Sifford 11, Dalton 9, Mattox 3, Barringer 3, Mauldin 2, Everhart 2.

Salisbury 10 26 18 19 — 73