College Park came into the Chris Huber Memorial Gym looking for a little redemption after Acalanes beat them in Pleasant Hill, but the Dons clearly had a plan to execute plays on the offense and dominate the boards and shut down shooting on the defense. The first period was textbook, the Dons coaching staff was laser focused while the players came out on fire and never let up.
Both the Falcons and the Dons were eager to put up a bucket, and after several missed shots and turnovers Jake Davis pulled down a defensive board then at the other end of the court he hit a 3 from the top of the key and was fouled on the shot. Jake swished the free-throw opening up the game with a four point play! It’s not often a game will open up 4-0 on one play! Zubin Acuna forced a turnover and Theo Stoll ran the play and fed Jack Bayless for a big 3.
Jake got another board – one of his 11 boards on the night – then Theo fed Jack for a back door cutter underneath and the Dons were up 9-0 midway through the first period. College Park finally got into the offensive action and hit a 3.
The Dons answered back with Jack grabbing a board and Zubin Acuna kissing in a 3 off of a pass from Justin Zegarowski. Jake and Jack kept working the boards and Jake dished to Zubin for another 3. The Dons were rolling and the Falcons were in a daze.
The offensive sequences just continued as the Dons kept elevating their game. Theo fed Jake underneath for 2, tough Dons defense caused a turnover and Jack fed Theo for 3. Zubin and Jack grabbed boards and Jordan Brown came in off the bench and quickly swished a corner 3. College Park got a few more points before the end of the first but as the clocked clicked down the Dons ended the first with a dominate 23-7 lead.
Dons basketball is anything but mundane, and this season the Varsity squad has made every game entertaining. The home crowd in the house took a moment of fresh breath with the Dons building a strong lead.
The second period got going with a couple of boards from Joe Reidenbach and Theo before College Park sank a 3 and the Dons responded with Joe driving underneath to put up 2 on a pass from Theo.
Justin was working the boards with a sequence of five rebounds in a matter of minutes and then was dishing assists as he fed Jake for 2. JZ then followed up hitting a 3 in the corner on an assist from Theo. Jake fed Theo for a wide open 3 and at the end of the half the Dons were up 33-17.
The Falcons started to claw back in the second period but a coupe Dons 3s edged the lead back up and it was an even period with both teams scoring 10 in the 2nd.
It was evident the Dons came into the game against the Falcons with fresh legs as they were dominating boards on both sides of the court. The 3rd period opened up with a Jake board, a couple rebounds by JZ and then a block by Jake. Theo hit another 3, and then Jack hit a layup after an offensive board.
Basketball is a such a game of momentum, as one team thrives the other team prepares for their big run. Those tides never swung away from the Dons in the matchup against College Park. CP hit a 2, but then Jake hit a 3 on an assist from Theo. CP hit another 2 and Zubin answered with a pretty layup on a pass from Justin. College park had a couple of 3s but then Jordan hit a 3 on a long skip pass from Jake.
The big highlight of the game which didn’t hit the scoring book but clearly hit deeply in the hearts of all the Dons fans was Jake grabbing a defensive board as the clock was winding down then fed Joe for a long range buzzer beater 3 to end the third period. Although the clock ticked to zero before Joe released the ball, it’s a play that will be remembered as a highlight of the season.
With a 48-29 lead going into the fourth period the final 8 minutes was about extending play to the full bench and having some fun letting the game roll. Jake started it off slapping a block on a CP 3 point attempt and then Ian Salmon grabbing a board.
Jake hit 2 on a feed from Joe, continuing to keep the Dons offense rolling. Joe was in the groove, he grabbed a board then hit a 3 on a dish from Theo then he drove hard drew a foul and hit a free-throw.
Theo, the sometimes silent deadly weapon and the sometimes dominate player on the court continued to work the offense. He stretched out his legs driving end to end to layup a 2 giving the Dons a 56-37 lead with 2:16 left in the game. College park finished out with a couple of buckets and the Dons gave the home crowd a big proud win dominating the game with a final 56-43 win, sweeping College Park on the season.
