Boys Basketball: Gaels Smash Dougherty Valley in Conference Opener

Dublin 71, Dougherty Valley 51,

The Star: Dublin’s Jamir Andrews paced the Gaels with 19 points and the aggressive play of Cameron Moses — who dished a game-high seven assists — helped them pull away early in the second half.

The Turning Point: The Gaels led this one wire to wire and the result appeared secure before the conclusion of the third quarter.

The Quote: “It’s a crap shoot, whoever catches the hot hand will have a chance,” said Dublin coach Tom Costello of his team’s prospects to win the DFAL championship.

What’s Next: Dublin travels to Miramonte on Friday.

Bottom Line: Dublin ultimately had the fresher legs, as they had worked nine different players into the game by the end of the first quarter.

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On a night when a couple of league rivals clashed for their conference opener, it was to be expected that there would be palpable tension between the two sides. 

Still, when the had dust cleared, Dublin High had rolled Dougherty Valley 71-51, and coach Tom Costello was left wanting more.

“We didn’t have a whole lot of energy in the first half,” he explained. “But we were able to grind it out in the second.”

To Costello’s point, the game was tight up until the halftime buzzer, when Kenrick Wong slipped in a leaning bankshot to pull the Wildcats within four points.  Unfortunately for Wong — who finished with a team-high 16 points — and his teammates, the Gaels did not falter after the intermission. 

“Nothing really changed, except we got tired” said Dougherty Valley coach Mike Hansen.  “Kenrick was on fire in the first half and then in the second half he didn’t have his legs. We’ve got to get more contributions from our bench.”

Hansen essentially worked in a six-man rotation, while Costello was able to send in his ninth man by the time the first quarter had ended. 

The deep rotation came as much out of necessity as it did effectiveness, as Dublin saw several key players stumble into foul trouble early. As a result, the Gaels stuck with a zone defense for the better part of the second period, which afforded the Wildcats the most offensive opportunities they would say all night.

When the second half kicked off, the home side returned to their man defense and effectively stifled the weary Dougherty Valley offense for the remainder of the contest.

Junior guard Jamir Andrews led all scorers with 19 points, and carried the Gaels through the first half.  The second half belonged to his backcourt mate Cameron Moses, who posted a nice line, including seven assists, five rebounds and a pair of steals to go with his nine points.

On the other side of the floor, senior guard Jerome Rufin had a quiet night, finishing with four points, five assists and three steals.  Even so, coach Hansen says his backcourt remains the class of the conference.

“I wouldn’t trade my three guards for any backcourt in the league.”

That’s not a problem for Costello, who believes his dynamic backcourt has what it takes to carry the Gaels to the league title. 

“We’ve got some great guards and they can shoot it a little bit,” he said.

Make no mistake, Costello isn’t overconfident about Dublin’s chances of taking home the DFAL trophy.

“It’s a crap shoot,” he said of the conference.  “Whoever catches the hot hand will have a chance.”

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Dublin 71, Dougherty Valley 51

1

2

3

4

F

Dougherty Valley

15

16

12

8

51

Dublin

20

15

20

16

71

Individuals — (fg ftm-fta tp)

Dougherty Valley

Wong 4  2-4  16, Ramos 3  0-2  16, Allen 4  0-0  8, Reese 1 3-8 5, Rufin 2  0-0  4, Wells 2 0-0 4, Ng 0 2-3 0. Totals 16  7-17  51.

Dublin

Andrews 6  3-4  19, McGlaston 3  9-10  16, Moses 3  3-5  9, Nielsen 4  0-0  8, Redmon 2  1-2  5, Hollie 2  0-0  4, Saavedra 1  1-2  3. Totals 21  9-12  71.

3-point goals: Dougherty Valley 4 (Ramos 2, Wong), Dublin 5 (Andrews 4, McGlaston).

Fouled out: None.

Records: DoughertyValley 9-4, 0-1 DFAL; Dublin 9-5, 1-0 DFAL