Late rally propels Trojan cagers

eschickler@bcnnew.com

The Weston boys basketball team wasn't going to give in easily last Friday. Despite trailing Immaculate by 10 points, 45-35 with 29.3 seconds remaining in the third quarter, Weston didn't believe it was over and in the end, came back and pulled out a 56-55 home victory to raise its record to 4-2. Immaculate dropped to 3-3.

"I thought we played with a ton of heart in the second half," said Trojans coach Ryan Errico. "We missed a ton of layups in the first half but I challenged them in the locker room [at halftime] and we battled back."

Weston trailed 27-22 at the break but took a 30-29 lead with 5:12 left in the third quarter with senior captain Dennis Levene (16 points, eight rebounds, one assist, two steals, two blocked shots) hitting two layups. Junior Cole Rossman (six points, two rebounds, three assists) helped defensively in this span, contributed a layup and set up one of Levene's baskets.

"We changed it up on defense and turned up the pressure, which made them think a lot more," said Errico.

However, the Mustangs responded with a 16-5 run to take the aforementioned 10-point lead, parlaying their outside shooting and pressure defense. Sophomore Daniel McCorkle (17 points) swished one of his three, 3-pointers and made a layup after a midcourt steal.

Trojan senior Jeff Evanier (six points, two rebounds, two assists) scored on a putback off the offensive glass with 0.6 second left to make it 45-37, the score after three quarters.

Sophomore Lyle Mitchell hit two free throws to cut the lead to 45-39 to start the fourth quarter but senior captain Brendan Bader (10 points) answered with a trey from McCorkle to make it 48-39.

Levene and senior captain Andrew Baron (five points, nine rebounds, two steals, one blocked shot), controlled the paint, which kept Weston in the game. Senior Robbie Cordisco (one assist, two steals) made his presence felt on defense. Sophomore Max Molinsky (seven assists, one steal) adroitly set up the Trojan offense.

"I really struggled in the first half but I said it was over and I had to play in the second half," said Levene. "I was more aggressive in taking the ball to the hole and when I do it, good things happen."

Immaculate led 55-49 with 3:10 to go in the game but junior Justin Mettel (21 points, three rebounds, two 3-pointers) was 7-9 from the foul line, including 6-6 down the stretch to pull the Trojans within four, 55-51 with 2:48 left.

"I shot a lot of free throws in practice and I'm glad it worked out," said Mettel. "It's a big part of the game."

Mettel then forced McCorkle to dribble the ball off his leg.

"He was quick but I was able to stay in front of him," said Mettel.

The Mustangs got it back on Bader's steal and had a chance to add to their lead after he drew the foul. However, he missed the front end of a one-of-one and Rossman grabbed the rebound.

With 42.6 seconds left, Mettel swished a 3 from the corner off a Molinsky feed.

"Max drove well and kicked it out to me," said Mettel. "I didn't play well in the first few games but I worked on my shots and I'm glad I could help."

Levene said, "It started out with Justin's three."

Weston's defense then forced senior captain Stanley Taylor (18 points) to miss a layup and Levene grabbed the rebound. He also drew the foul with 25.9 seconds remaining and hit both free throws to give the Trojans a 56-55 lead.

"I practice [free throws] a lot and I focused," said Levene. "We work on free throws every day."

Overall, Weston was 16-19 from the foul line. Conversely, the Mustangs were 7-14 from the charity stripe.

"We work on free throws every day so we can resemble fourth quarter situations," said Errico. "Dennis and Justin were huge for us tonight."

Immaculate tried to win it at the end but the Trojans' pressure defense forced its layup attempt rolled out.

"It was a great stop in the last possession," said Levene. "This was a big win for us because we're now halfway towards making states and it will help us out with the tiebreaker for the SWC tournament."