by Stow, Ohio – In a back and forth contest, sophomore forward Van Shyjka’s layup with five seconds remaining propelled host Stow to a 50-48 victory over visiting Twinsburg in Suburban League National Division conference play.
Stow jumped out in front early, knocking down a handful of shots before Twinsburg rallied to tie it at 12 at the end of the first quarter.
Van Shyjka, who scored eight points in the first half, and got key rebounds on both ends of the court, would prove to be the difference maker later on.
The Stow Bulldog defense utilized a 2-3 zone throughout the game, making life difficult for Twinsburg on the offensive end, especially in the first half. It was tied late in the second quarter before Stow went on a run, capped off by sophomore forward Desmond Copeland’s late three-point basket and ensuing free throw. This put the Bulldogs up 30-24 going into the halftime break.
They stretched their lead to 35-24 after a layup by Shyjka and a three-pointer by Jack Bryden in the third. The Tigers stormed back, going on a 14-3 run to trail 38-35, at the end of the third quarter.
Joey Plantner’s three point shot tied it for the Tigers early in the fourth. From there on, it became a back-and-forth affair, with both teams trading baskets.
With the score tied at 46 with a shade over three minutes remaining, Stow utilized a keep-away strategy to melt off some clock on its final two possessions. They took the lead on a Van Shyjka layup. Twinsburg drove down the court, countering with a layup of their own by junior wing Dante Yarborough, tying it with 1:35 left. On their ensuing possession, Stow melted off the clock, finding Shyjka for the go-ahead layup to give Bulldogs the lead.
Twinsburg had a chance to win, but McElrath’s three-point attempt was partially blocked.
“Twinsburg has been playing lights out. They’ve been the best team in the league the last half of the season. They played tremendous defense which makes it hard to run your stuff. We worked really hard on responding to traps. Our kids were so much more poised this time.” said Stow head coach Dave Close.
“If we can hold the ball for the last shot, let’s do it. Van (Shyjka) put a nice finish on it. Every game is just a growing and learning process. The learning here was how to deal with pressure. I give the kids a lot of credit. They grinded out on defense and were willing to wait for a good shot most of the time.” he added.
Van Shyjka had 19 points, including the last four of the game. Sophomore forward Owen Bainbridge chipped in with nine to aid the winning effort.
“This huge win means a lot to us. Now since we have a four-game winning streak going, if we can keep that going, we can go far in the playoffs. I believe in this team.” said Shyjka.
In a losing effort, Twinsburg senior wing Ken McElrath had 19 points. Junior Dante Yarborough added 13 of his own.
“We came out a little lackadaisical. I told the team at the half, we have to go out and play hard, we have to play harder. They played a very effective 2-3 (zone).” said McElrath.
“We put ourselves in a hole by not playing extremely hard, not playing together, and some starters not getting it done, so we had to go to the bench. The positive that we’ll take from this is that the bench stepped up and made plays and brought us back into the ball game. It was not one of our best nights.” said Twinsburg head coach Phil Schmook.
Stow improves to 9-10 overall and are on a four game winning streak. They sit 7-5 in the Suburban League National Division and travel to Hudson next Friday to continue conference play.
Twinsburg drops to 11-7 overall, snapping a four game winning streak. They sit 8-4 in the Suburban League National Division and host Aurora Saturday evening in a non conference showdown.
