Basketball Team Falls in Close Game with De La Salle
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Elijah Morgan makes an aggressive move at the basket as the Jays rally late in the fourth quarter.
It was a tough game to watch on Tuesday night in the De La Salle gym. The Blue Jays shot just 37% from the field in the contests and were outscored by the Cavaliers 25-4 in the second quarter.
Add to that a series of technical fouls in the second half which slowed the game to a snail’s pace, and it seemed like the Blue Jays just couldn’t find their rhythm.
Despite these hardships, Jesuit showed tremendous resilience for three quarters of play. In the first quarter, the Jays put forth an inspired effort. Their full court press forced multiple De La Salle turnovers, and the Jesuit shots were falling, propelling the Jays to a 13-6 lead.
In the second quarter, De La Salle stepped up their intensity, and Jesuit was stunned. A seven point lead at the beginning of the quarter turned into a 14 point deficit at the half.
To their credit, the team regrouped during halftime, and battled their way back to within striking distance. The third quarter effort cut the De La Salle lead to 10 points.
In the fourth quarter, the Blue Jays laid it all on the line. Hunt Conroy hit a momentum swinging three pointer from the wing in front of the Jesuit bench, and Elijah Morgan knocked down two three pointers of his own to ignite a late game rally. Morgan was the high scorer for the Jays with 16 points.
Unfortunately, De La Salle was not giving up easily, hitting threes step-in-step with the Blue Jay rally. Jesuit was able to keep its intensity high as the game drew on. Will Hillery sunk two free throws to narrow the lead to four points with 34 seconds left. Hillery had 14 points in the game.
The Blue Jays put themselves in a place with a real shot at victory. De La Salle held the line at the free throw line, however, and pulled ahead 56-49 by the final buzzer.
High marks go to the team for its resilience in a tough game, but the Blue Jays are still looking for a way to beat tough teams in the stretch as they enter district play.
The Blue Jays open district play on Friday night at Holy Cross. Tip off against the Tigers is at 7 PM.
Galleries
Basketball vs De La Salle, Jan. 3, 2017
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Will Hillery leads the early offensive attack that spurred a Jesuit first quarter lead. -
Michael Hull applies full court pressure on the De La Salle point guard. -
Chris Beebe takes this three pointer on the first possession of the second quarter. -
Will Hillery makes one of the two field goals of the second quarter to try to keep the Jays alive. -
Collin Kulivan draws the foul on this play at the basket. -
Chris Beebe shoots for three from the corner. -
Will Hillery challenges the point guard, trying to light a spark for the team. -
Elijah Morgan shoots for three from the wing. -
In the second half, Will Hillery gets his layup over his defender for the score. -
Collin Kulivan pulls down this rebound over the De La Salle player to keep the possession going for the Jays. -
Hunt Conroy draws the blocking foul as the Blue Jays try to make their way back to within striking distance. -
Elijah Morgan looks for the steal to give the Jays another possession on offense. -
Elijah Morgan hits one of two three pointers in the middle of the fourth quarter to narrow the deficit in the final minutes. -
Elijah Morgan makes this attempt at the goal, which misses,... -
...but Michael Hull is there for the put-back layup to narrow the lead to eight points. -
Will Hillery gets fouled on the way to the basket, and his two free throws narrow the deficit to four points with 34 seconds remaining.
