NTL BOYS BASKETBALL: WYALUSING HOLDS OFF SAYRE, 45-41 (24 PHOTOS) (2021-01-15)
By TIM BIRNEYValley Sports ReportSAYRE "” Sayre wiped away a 10-point deficit in a 3 1/2-minute span to end the third quarter, but Wyalusing scored four points to start the fourth quarter en route to a 45-41 win here Friday night in NTL boys basketball action.
"We played hard, but we can't put ourselves in a position to be down 12 in the first half," said Sayre coach Devin Shaw.
"We are able to erase the deficit in the third quarter to tie it up, then gave up two quick buckets to start the fourth.
"Wyalusing is a good basketball team and they play team basketball," added Shaw. "We will learn and get better from this game."
Lucas Milne scored on a putback on the offensive boards "” his only bucket of the game - with 3:21 remaining in the third quarter to give the Rams a 32-22 lead, but junior Dom Fabbri knocked down a 15-foot jumper just 30 seconds later to trigger Sayre's 10-0 run.
Senior Matt Lane added consecutive buckets on driving lay-ups to trim the deficit to 32-28 with 1:12 left in the third quarter.
After senior Connor Young knocked down a pair of free throws with 34 seconds left, the Rams missed a pair just 15 seconds later. Fabbri finished off the rally with a short jumper off the glass with 5 seconds remaining to tie the game at 32-32.
After the Redskins turned the ball over on their first possession of the final stanza, Kashawn Cameron scored his only bucket of the game to give the Rams a lead it would not relinquish, at 34-32.
The Rams had a chance to extend its lead moments later, following a steal, but missed a breakaway lay-up. Following another steal, Wyalusing missed on another breakaway lay-up, but Isaiah Way followed the miss with a putback to make it 36-32 with 6:14 remaining in the game.
The teams traded buckets over the next four minutes, with Fabbri's 3-pointer with 2:19 left in the game, trimming the Redskins deficit to 42-41.
The Rams ran nearly two minutes off the clock before the Redskins sent Mitchell Burke to the line with 36 seconds remaining. He made 1 of 2 free throws to up the lead to 43-41.
Sayre held the ball looking for the last shot, but turned the ball over with 3.2 seconds remaining. Abram Bennett, who was 5-for-5 from the line in the game, made two free throws with 2.6 seconds left to seal the victory.
Sophomore Lucas Horton drained a pair of 3-pointers to give Sayre an early 6-4 lead, and Young scored on a putback with 52 second remaining in the first quarter to send the game in to the second quarter at 11-11.
Fabbri knocked down a 17-foot jumper with 4:15 remaining in the first half to tie the game at 14-14, but the Rams used a 13-1 run, fueled by 3-pointers by Bennett and Grayden Cobb, as well as an old-fashioned three-point play by Blake Morningstar, to take a 27-15 lead with 50 seconds left.
Senior Zach Moore drained a 3-pointer to open the second-half scoring, and cut the deficit to 27-19, then the teams traded points until Sayre's 10-0 run tied the game.
Fabbri led all scorers with 17 points, while Horton scored nine, Young added six points, and Lane chipped in with four.
Bennett led Wyalusing with 10 points, while Burke and Way added eight points apiece, and Grayden Cobb chipped in with seven.
Sayre, now 1-2, returns to action Monday when it hosts Athens.
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IN PHOTO 1: Sayre's Dom Fabbri. ... PHOTOS BY DAVE ALLIGER - TRAVELING PORTRAITS.
