George Defeats Hill 57-54 in a Thriller: Kehler on Hoops
Written by: Dell Jackson on January 11, 2024
George Defeats Hill 57-54 in a Thriller: Kehler on Hoops
Article by David Kehler
Freshman Tyler Sutton hit a 3-pointer on an inbounds play as time expired to give George a 57-54 win versus visiting Hill on Wednesday afternoon, quelling a furious fourth quarter rally by the visitors. While George never trailed in the contest, Hill tied the game at 54 in the last minute of play. The teams then traded turnovers, setting up an inbounds play for George with 1.8 seconds left in the fourth quarter. The ball went to Sutton on the right side of the court, and he quickly launched the shot that sealed the victory for George. George, located in Newtown, Bucks County, and Hill, located in Pottstown, are private schools and are not members of the PIAA.
George got off to fast start in this contest, taking an 11-2 lead in the opening minutes of play, paced by terrific work inside by 5th year senior Tristan Guillouette and a couple of 3-pointers by senior Luke Melniczak. Both teams played a lot of zone defense in this game, and it took awhile for Hill to find the range.
Early in the second frame, Hill cut George’s lead to 16-12 on a 3-pointer by Logan Davis, but excellent low post play by Guillouette kept George on top. At the end of the second quarter, George’s Melniczak scored on a three point play, then on a 3-pointer, and George led 26-17 at halftime.
George’s run continued at the outset of the third quarter with a fast break layup by junior Kasey Fleming, a hoop inside by Guillouette on an inbounds play, and a 3-pointer by Fleming. So, spanning the end of the second quarter and the beginning of the third frame, George had a 13-0 run. George dominated the boards in the third quarter, with a 13 to seven advantage, and a 3-pointer by Melniczak at the end of the frame put George up by 16 points, 43-27.
Then Hill’s fireworks started. Hill began to press, and with effectiveness, as George committed six turnovers in the fourth quarter. Also, Hill’s offense began to thrive. Hill opened the final frame with a 7-0 run, consisting of a fast break layup by sophomore Ethan Johnson, a fast break dunk by Johnson, and a 3-pointer by Johnson. Following a putback by George’s Guillouette, Hill senior Nehemiah Holmes scored a three point play on a putback, and the visitors cut George’s lead to 45-37. Aided by George turnovers caused by Hill defensive pressure, the visitors drew closer, and they had all of the momentum. Instrumental in Hill’s rally were four fourth quarter 3-pointers by junior sharpshooter Anderson Brindjar. With less than a minute left in the fourth quarter, Brindjar’s fourth 3-pointer of the frame tied the game at 54. It was the game’s only tie, and Hill never had a lead at any point in the contest. After the teams exchanged turnovers, George had possession, and they called a timeout to set up a last shot. The ball was inbounded on the right side in George’s half of the court with 1.8 seconds left, and it went to Sutton. Positioned beyond the arc, the freshman caught and shot the ball with one motion, and in it went.
Hill’s fourth quarter rally was very impressive and entirely gutsy, but it fell just short. Sutton’s winning basket was totally clutch.
For the game, George out-rebounded Hill 43 to 32. George committed 15 turnovers, while Hill had 11 miscues. Neither team was very accurate on the free throw line: George was five of nine and Hill was three of seven. George made eight 3-pointers, while Hill scored nine times from beyond the arc. Hill’s Brindjar made five of his team’s 3-pointers.
George scoring: Tristan Guillouette 17, Luke Melniczak 16, Tyler Sutton 12, Kasey Fleming 9, and Ivan Ryabov 3.
Hill scoring: Ethan Johnson 15, Anderson Brindjar 15, Nehemiah Holmes 11, Jacob Meachem 5, Quadri Bashiru 5, and Logan Davis 3.
Hill 9 8 10 27 -54
George 14 12 17 14-57
On Twitter: @david_kehler
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