Class 3A State Title Game Preview
Friday’s class 3A semifinals featured one blowout and an expected ugly rivalry game that ended with a shot that will go down in Yamhill County lore. We take a look at the semis & preview Saturday’s state title tilt between…
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Continue ReadingFriday’s class 3A semifinals featured one blowout and an expected ugly rivalry game that ended with a shot that will go down in Yamhill County lore. We take a look at the semis & preview Saturday’s state title tilt between Delsalle & Amity.
Friday’s Semifinals Wrap Up
The first half of this match up between the #1 & 4 seeds was competitive as expected with the Delasalle taking a 27-21 lead into the break over Pleasant Hill. A 17-3 third quarter quickly put to rest any hopes of a Pleasant Hill upset. The telling stats for Pleasant Hill? The Billies shot only 35% from the field, were out rebounded by six, & committed 19 turnovers, not the way to knock off the defending state champs. Leading the way for Pleasant Hill was 6’5 senior Logan Pruitt who went 8/15 from the field on his way to a 19 point 6 rebound night. Kadeem Nelson took a step toward being named tournament MVP with his 25 point performance including 5/8 from deep. Anthony Mosley was Robin to Nelson’s Batman with a 10 point 6 rebound effort. The second semifinal match up featured arguably the biggest rivalry in class 3A when Dayton took on Amity for the 4th time this season. We predicted in our game preview that the teams were so familiar with each other that the game was likely to be low scoring and kind of ugly due to the familiarity that the teams have with each other. The game delivered as promised by provided a finish that no one in the greater McMinnville area will never soon forget. The teams went back & forth throughout the game with Dayton holding a 36-32 lead with under 20 seconds to go. That’s when Michael Duncan, a 5’9 senior guard threw up an almost desperation 30 foot shot that found the bottom of the net to cut the margin to 1. After Dayton converted 1 of 2 free throws, Amity took time out to set up Duncan’s place in Amity history. He took the inbounds pass, weaved through a couple of Dayton defenders & got off a running 22 footer that found nothing but net as time expired and a 38-37 victory. Duncan finished the game with 12 points on 4/7 shooting from the three point line to go along with 4 rebounds. 6’6 sophomore post Josh Wart controlled the paint with an 11 point, 9 rebound, 2 block effort that also saw him alter numerous Dayton shots at the rim. It wasn’t all pretty for the Warriors as they were able to overcome a 12/35 shooting night and 22 turnovers. Dayton saw their hopes of playing in a 4th consecutive state title game come to an end mainly in part to their shooting woes as they went 13/45 from the field, including 2/13 from three point range. 6’2 senior wing Lukas Findley had a solid outing for the Pirates with a 16 point 4 rebound performance.
Championship Game Preview
There be no team in the entire state that has been more dominant at their level than Delasalle. They have only had two games inside of 10 points against 3A teams, included in that run of domination was an 83-56 victory over Amity in December. Amity is playing well down the stretch and has pulled off three straight elimination victories over teams that appeared to be better on paper. Will that be enough?? We say no, expect Amity to scrap, compete, and find a way to hang around for a half or so, but much like Friday’s semifinal game, Delasalle’s depth, athleticism, and constant pressure will prove to much as the Knights will pull away for a relatively easy victory and their 2nd consecutive state championship.