DV wins close, intensely exciting games against Scranton

Delaware Valley and Scranton High school were both looking to improve their records on Jan. 16, as both were comparable to this point of the year so far.

The JVs played the first game. By half-time it was close, with Scranton on top, 27-23.

When the second half started, DV looked rejuvenated. Scranton, however, was a taller team and used their height to their advantage. Their style was an inside game, scoring well under the basket. DV was also shooting well and held a 45-38 third-period advantage.

As the game was coming to a close, Scranton started hitting outside shots, getting a three-pointer and a two-pointer to close it up. The final score was 55-50, with Delaware Valley winning.

The big scorer for DV was Ryan Doherty ,with 26 points. He was almost a one-man show all night. He was hitting from all over the court -- hitting three-point shots, two-point shots, and inside shots. It was show time for Ryan. Keep it up young man. You are going to be fun to watch over the next two years.

Varsity

With the Varsity up next, the height advantage enjoyed by the JV team was not an issue. The Varsity team is still fairly tall. Their game plan was similar to the Scranton JV squad: tough defense, bottling it up under the basket, using fast hands and getting many steals, rebounding, and getting lots of shots under the basket. They suffered from poor outside shooting, and DV managed to use this to their advantage.

DV's problem was very poor decision making when passing the ball, resulting in lost opportunities and losing the ball to the fast hands and very determined ball stealing of Scranton.

So here is the break-down.

At the end of the first period Scranton is up 15-11. DV comes alive in the second period, pulling ahead 34-26, but it was much closer than the score would indicate.

At the start of the second half DV surprised me, coming out cautiously and tentatively. Usually they have strong third periods but looked sluggish tonight. Cold shooting on DV's part allowed Scranton to get back in the game while DV was holding a slight 44-42 lead.

In the fourth period DV took command and looked to have put the game away with a six-point lead and 1:46 left in the game. I thought that one more basket by DV would seal it, but they couldn't get the basket, and three steals by Scranton resulted in six points to tie the game up. DV had the ball with about 12 seconds to go but lost the ball again with 2.1 seconds to play. With hearts pounding for everyone in the stands, Scranton put up a hail Mary shot that fell short.

Over time folks, here we go.

A Scranton player gets fouled and makes both shots. Yikes.

Then Jackson Shafer gets fouled 5 times and goes 8 for 10. Scranton then got a very late layup to close out the score with Delaware Valley winning 64-60

This was another extremely exciting game, and it was great fun to watch. We are about two-thirds of the way through the season, so if you want some fun come out and watch these young men play. They never quit. They never give up. They play their hearts out every second of the game.