Putnam City West edges Del City 59-54 in an electric atmosphere

<p>5A Del City fell short 59-54 in its contest against 6A Putnam City West on Friday night. Del City hosted the matchup and had a great turnout with eager fans ready for some high school basketball.</p> <p style="text-align: left;"><b>TOP PERFORMANCES</b></p> <p>Del City’s 6’5 and 6’9 juniors [player_tooltip player_id="981287" first="Terry" last="McMorris"] and [player_tooltip player_id="1068562" first="Brandon" last="Garrison"] showed out for their squad in a well-fought competition. Garrison dropped 15 points with three of those points coming from the free throw line and also swatted a few shots away on defense while displaying a great amount of leadership throughout the game. McMorris put up 12 points and also spent some time at the charity stripe, sinking five foul-shots of his own.</p> <p>Putnam City West’s 6’0 junior Orian Scales and 6’3 senior [player_tooltip player_id="955396" first="Corey" last="Gordon"] had standout performances on Friday night. Scales played with intensity on the defensive end of the court as well as the offensive end. He made quick decisions in transition, had tough finishes and was pick-pocketing ball handlers left and right as well as getting in the passing lanes. Gordon seemed to be the one to continuously hold up the Patriots’ offense by getting a tough bucket when they needed it, whether it was a mid-range pull-up or a tough finish off a strong drive.</p> <p><b>GRITTY PLAYS</b></p> <p>Throughout the contest, PCW maintained their lead and did not get complacent. However, Del City was not shying away from the pressure and continued to fight and stay in the game. Down by seven at the end of the first, Del City was plagued by a plethora of great plays from the Patriots in the second quarter. Scales sneakily waited for an outlet pass after a Patriots miss, the 6’0 guard snagged the ball and took it down court for an and-one, getting the Patriots fans on their feet. A couple plays later, they would get on their feet again as [player_tooltip player_id="1295731" first="Jordan" last="Warrior"] would step in the lane, put his body on the line and take a charge from the large [player_tooltip player_id="981287" first="Terry" last="McMorris"]. [player_tooltip player_id="964490" first="Elijah" last="James"] would also draw his own charge just after Warrior, except this one was committed by the even larger [player_tooltip player_id="1068562" first="Brandon" last="Garrison"]. </p> <p><b>GAME OF RUNS</b></p> <p>With the score at 26-32 coming out of halftime, the Patriots came out red-hot. A few quick baskets and a [player_tooltip player_id="1295731" first="Jordan" last="Warrior"] layup separated PCW by 12 points early in the third quarter. Del City was consistently down double digits in the third but turned it up near the end of the quarter. A couple second-chance opportunities and an emphatic trey ball by [player_tooltip player_id="981287" first="Terry" last="McMorris"] erupted the Del City side of the gym and brought the score to 47-41 going into the fourth quarter. </p> <p><b>NAIL-BITING FOURTH QUARTER</b></p> <p>[player_tooltip player_id="1376834" first="Boomer" last="Barnes"] would begin the fourth quarter with a well-timed layup. Barnes was a key factor in this game, scoring nine points and was always in the right place at the right time. [player_tooltip player_id="1068562" first="Brandon" last="Garrison"] made some key plays in the fourth quarter for Del City, but the lack of offense was the demise for the Eagles. Garrison hit a jumper in the middle of the key as he had done all night, bringing the score to 49-45 PCW. Directly on the other end, the lengthy Garrison swatted away a layup attempt. Just a few plays later, Garrison would make another exciting block on [player_tooltip player_id="955396" first="Corey" last="Gordon"] to get the fans on the edge of their seats. However, the ability by Orian Scales to pump fake and drive multiple times with authority negated Del City’s efforts. [player_tooltip player_id="1372134" first="Damarious" last="Vealy"] would knock down four free throws in the fourth, keeping them in the game. PCW would pull away nearing a minute and a half left in the contest and sealed the win with a steal by [player_tooltip player_id="964490" first="Elijah" last="James"].</p>