Blue Devils advance to District 6-AA semifinals
Taneyhill’s last-second shot gives Devils the win
Joe Padula helped propel Bellwood-Antis past Richland.
February 22, 2016
With the game tied, all eyes were on Nathan Davis as the clock wound down, but just as Davis started to drive to the basket he passed the ball to Jarrett Taneyhill.
Taneyhill dribbled once and with the last shot of the game he sunk the layup, sending the Bellwood-Antis Blue Devils into the District 6-AA semifinals with a 70-68 win over Richland last Friday in Hollidaysburg.
The Blue Devils will now play rival Tyrone in the District 6-AA semifinal on February 23 at 7 P.M. in the Hollidaysburg Area High School gymnasium.
The Blue Devils trailed the Rams 37-30 heading into the half of the quarterfinal, but they came out after halftime and showed why they were the number one seed as they rallied back.
It was an ugly first half for the Blue Devils, who came out flat from the start of the game; and the scoreboard reflected their play. At the end of the first quarter B-A was down 20-16, and their scoring trouble continued into the second quarter.
In the second quarter Richland out-scored Bellwood-Antis 17-14 as the Blue Devils continued to struggle making baskets. Heading into the half things weren’t looking good for B-A as they trailed by seven.
“We were sluggish, and came out overlooking our opponent. We weren’t mentally prepared for the game,” said junior Ethan McGee.
The Blue Devils came out in the second half and looked like a completely different team. They started to make their shots and were capitalizing on Richland turnovers.
Bellwood-Antis started the third quarter on a 12-2 run and continued to dominate throughout the quarter. By the end of the third quarter Bellwood was leading by seven after coming back and scoring 28 points to Richland’s 14. However B-A wasn’t about to get a fairy tale ending; the Rams came to win and they tried to do everything they could to make it happen.
In the final quarter Bellwood was plagued with fouls and was unable to make its shots. A game that Bellwood seemed to have in the bag went downhill fast, and when the final minute rolled around it was tied at 68. B-A scored a measly 12 points in the fourth quarter while they allowed Richland to put up 17, but only two of those points really mattered.
For the game, the Rams hit just 11 of 24 from the foul line.
“We struggled throughout the whole game, and if they (Richland) would’ve made their foul shots we would have lost the game,” said Noah D’Angelo.
In the final seconds Davis drew defenders on his drive, and passed the ball to an open Taneyhill, who made the game winning layup.
“During the timeout Coach Rizzo told me to be ready to put the ball through the hoop. I was just waiting for the pass,” said Taneyhill.
Davis finished with 27 points and 12 rebounds, while Joe Padula added 15 points. Taneyhill had four.
Bellwood-Antis made it to the District semifinals last year but lost in a close one to West Branch. The Warriors will play Penns Valley tomorrow in Tyrone in the other semifinal.
