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IAC BOYS BASKETBALL: WOODRING POWERS WAVERLY PAST TOWANDA, INTO VALLEY CHRISTMAS TOURNEY FINALS (24 PHOTOS) (2019-12-27)

By TIM BIRNEY
Valley Sports Report
WAVERLY "” Senior Scott Woodring poured in 17 points in the  first quarter to help Waverly to an early double-digit lead en route to a 64-33 win over Towanda here Friday night in the opening round of the Valley Christmas Boys Basketball Tournament.

Woodring, who is coming off two knee surgeries in less than a year, turned in his best performance of the young season, with 34 points, 12 rebounds, and four blocked shots.

"Scotty had a dominating individual performance in the first half, as he has done many times in his career," said Waverly coach Lou Judson. "But, we haven't seen it this year to that extend until this game."

Woodring, who made 13 of his 15 field-goal attempts in the game, was 7 of 8 from the field in the first eight minutes, including a rare four-point play when he was fouled, while draining a 3-pointer from the top-of-the-key.

Junior Ryan Lambert's 3-pointer from the corner was the Wolverines' only other field goal in a 20-8 first-quarter blitz.

Towanda closed the gap to 24-15 with 3:28 remaining in the second quarter, but Waverly closed the first half with an 8-0 run, thanks to six points from Woodring, and a bucket from sophomore Caden Hollywood, for a 32-15 halftime lead.

Judson credited his team's depth, and resulting defense, as a key in the win.

"What I was pleased with is the guys who are coming off the bench for us are really scrappy, and get after it defensively. It kind of takes us sometimes to a new level.

"It allows some of our starters to rest, so our depth right now is very important to us, and is really key for us," said Judson.

"Defensively, we've been pretty solid the last few games," noted Judson. "At times, we do struggle to score if Scotty's not scoring, and we're not making our perimeter shots.

"We picked up a little more full court man to create some offense with our defense, and I think that helped us get more acclimated to the game sooner," added Judson. "We've got some different defenses we like to go to late in the game, but right now our full court man has been something we've excelled at lately."

Senior Jalen McCarty drained a pair of 3-pointers in the third quarter, Woodring scored five more points, and junior Kobe Decker converted an old-fashioned three-point play in a 19-11 spurt that extended the Waverly lead to 51-26 entering the final eight minutes.

McCarty had eight points, six rebounds, and four assists in the win, while Lambert had five points and four boards, and Decker had five points and two steals.

Hollywood and junior Nick VanHouten scored five points apiece for the Wolverines, while junior Peyton Bowen had five rebounds and four steals, and junior Griffen Stein grabbed five boards.

Waverly will play Athens in the championship game at Athens Saturday at 8 p.m., while Towanda takes on Sayre in the consolation game at 3:30 p.m. at Sayre.

"”"”"”"”"”"”

IN PHOTO 1: Waverly's Scott Woodring. .... PHOTOS BY TIM BIRNEY.


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