By PAUL GOTHAM
ROCHESTER, N.Y. — DaSiah White scored five points and handed out two assists during a decisive fourth-quarter run as Wilson Magnet defeated host Monroe High 64-58 in Rochester City Athletic Conference (RCAC) action, Friday night.
Trailing 43-42, Wilson scored on six of eight possessions to take a lead it did not surrender.
“Basketball is a game of runs,” assistant coach Victor Norflee said matter-of-factly. “We needed to stop them at the right time, and we make our run at the right time.”
White led Dolcin Flood in transition for a layup. Two possessions later, the ninth-grade guard hit his fourth 3-pointer of the game.
DaSiah White to Dolcin Flood. 4:39 remaining @wildcats_wilson 47 @JMHSRedjackets 43 pic.twitter.com/fDr5ZIGhte
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) January 22, 2022
A one-point deficit had turned into a seven-point advantage.
“He stepped up big time. Generally, he will want to shoot. He’s a great scorer. As a freshman, not many people can stop him one-on-one, and he knows that. It’s up to me as a coach to say ‘hey, you got to trust those other four guys.’”
White followed with another assist to Flood underneath and the duo exchanged roles with White on the finishing end for a 57-46 Wilson lead.
Dolcin Flood bucket. DaSiah White dime. @wildcats_wilson pic.twitter.com/dTRLurtUja
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) January 22, 2022
White finished the game with a team-high 24 points. He finished the fourth quarter with four helpers.
“To come out with four assists in crunch time is huge,” Norflee stated. “That shows he’s taking steps toward maturity. His teammates, they love that coming from him. Now he can trust them. They trust him, and hopefully we can gel moving forward into the next eight games and sectionals.”
With the win, Wilson stopped a mini two-game skid and improved to 6 wins and 6 losses on the season.
“It was mandatory that we won tonight,” Norflee said. “This was a big confidence booster for us. We wanted to make sure we took care of business.”
Wilson opened the third quarter scoring eight straight to take its first double-digit lead of the game at 36-26.
Lasharm Henry buries a corner 3, and @wildcats_wilson have their first double-digit lead of the night at 36-26. pic.twitter.com/YOGtfbXV7E
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) January 22, 2022
But Monroe fought back.
Felton Gray hit a 3-pointer from the right corner and then set up Jeremiah Kpor. Gray then converted and steal and slam to give Monroe a 43-42 lead.
Steal and slam from Felton Gray. pic.twitter.com/2ruVzAqCrD
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) January 22, 2022
“We’ve been in a lot of games this year where we had to overcome adversity,” Norflee said. “Because of those games, we were able to win tonight.”
Flood finished with 11 points including an and-one to give Wilson a 45-43 lead. Lasharm Henry had nine points. Zavarius Henry and Khalil Lewis scored seven apiece. Michael Kelly had four points and Joshua Joyce rounded out the scoring for the Wildcats with two points.
Wilson hosts SOTA on Tuesday for a 6:30 PM start.
Davijon Jones gets ahead of the defense for 2 more. pic.twitter.com/867Op1y6mG
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) January 22, 2022
Monroe’s Davion Jones led all scorers with 26 points. Kpor had 10 and Gray finished with nine. Javel Tanksley scored six points. Tyree Stewart (4) and Khalil Graham (3) also scored for the Redjackets.
Ball fake and pull-up: Felton Gray connects from the corner. @JMHSRedjackets cut the deficit to 1 at 40-39 with 1:12 to go in the third. pic.twitter.com/1gWvpBvxuG
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) January 22, 2022
Monroe (3-8) played without leading scorer Jaquan Shears who suffered a foot injury in practice on Thursday. The Redjackets travel to play at Early College on Monday. A 6:30 PM tip is slated.
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