Monday, February 18, 2002
Delhi boys, Sidney girls romp to league crowns
Whittaker strong as Bulldogs win first league title since 1987 with 66-45 triumph
By Rob Centorani
Staff Writer
BAINBRIDGE — There had to be times Saturday night when Delhi boys basketball fans expected football coach Dave Kelly to emerge from the stands and draw up a play.
The physical and athletic Bulldogs never let up against Harpursville in the first Midstate Athletic Conference Championship. Sharpshooter Sean Whittaker outscored the Hornets from the field as Delhi won its first league title in 15 years, beating Harpursville, 66-45, before a packed house at Bainbridge-Guilford.
Whittaker hit 10 field goals, including six 3-pointers, in a 26-point night. Harpursville made 11 field goals, but scored 25 points from the field.
"I think at this time of the year everyone gets into it more," said Delhi forward Chris Clark, who scored 22 points and grabbed 11 rebounds. "It gets more physical and the refs let you a play a little more, and that leads to a little more contact."
Harpursville's Chris Fernandez had the statistical line of the night with 21 attempts from the free throw line, and probably as many marks on his body to go with them.
"There's no doubt about it, their man-to-man defense is the best in the area, bar none," Hornets coach Terry Heller said of the Bulldogs, whose last league title came in the 1987 Susquenango Association final. "Those kids are physical and they're intelligent. They're not afraid to knock you down, but they'll pick you back up. We had to work for everything we got."
Whittaker, a 6-foot-3 junior, made three 3-pointers and scored 11 points in the first quarter, when Delhi bolted to a 23-9 lead. He continually found open looks along the left wing against Harpursville's 3-2 zone.
Delhi was not content to shoot the first 3-point attempt that came its way, using excellent ball movement in converting nine from beyond the arc.
"We really worked the ball around," said Delhi coach Dan Wagner, whose team is 19-1 and has won 12 consecutive games. "It's fundamental. You work the ball around, move the defense from one side to the next and if you can get the ball inside, do so with either a pass or penetration.
"You have to spread them out to create holes," he continued. "Then if you can get the defense to collapse, kick it back out."
The Hornets (15-5) pulled within 27-20 when Fernandez, who had 13 points, hit two free throws with three minutes left in the first half. But Whittaker dribbled left to the baseline to hit a 15-footer, and then made his fourth 3-pointer of the half with 40 seconds left to make it 34-21 at halftime.
When Whittaker made the last of his 3-pointers — a shot from the top of the key with one minute gone in the third quarter — Delhi led, 40-25. Harpursville would not get closer than 13 thereafter.
Senior Clark has shown the most improvement for Delhi since last season. The same calm and decision-making expertise he showed on the football field as quarterback for Delhi's state-championship team was evident on the basketball court.
Arguably his best play came midway through the third period, when he cut down the lane and received a pass from Brett Sohns. He made the layup and was fouled for a three-point play.
"Chris is a very smart player," Heller said. "You can tell why he's a quarterback. If he gets a smaller kid on him, he takes him down to the post and if he gets a bigger kid on him, he takes him outside. He's just a very shrewd player. I think he's one of those kids who gets everything out of his ability."
In a much different manner, Delhi junior Mike Barnes is the same way.
Barnes, a graceful and skilled wide receiver in football, did all the dirty work on Saturday. He went after loose balls and defended like a hungry dog protecting a T-bone.
"These kids are winners and that's what they came to do tonight," said Wagner, whose team lost, 52-42, to Windsor in last year's Susquenango Association title game. "They didn't want to leave anything to chance. Last year, we kind of sputtered in the last eight minutes of the Sus championship and we didn't want to let that happen again."
Delhi is seeded behind No. 1 Seton Catholic Central for the Section Four Class C playoffs.
"I'm not overconfident," said Wagner, whose team plays host to Unatego at 7 p.m. Tuesday in a first-round game. "I think we're focused. That's what this week (which included victories over Johnson City and Oxford) has been about. I really wanted to show them what's out there."
DELHI 66, HARPURSVILLE 45
DELHI (19-1): Sean Clark 0 1-2 1, Tom Tuthill 2 1-2 6, Mike Barnes 1 1-2 4, Ben Oles 0 0-0 0, Jason Hadley 0 0-0 0, Chris Clark 5 11-12 22, Brett Sohns 1 1-4 3, Sean Whittaker 10 0-0 26, David Daye 2 0-2 4. TOTALS: 21 15-24 66.
Three-point field goals: H (McElwain 2, Dayton); D (Whittaker 6, Tuthill, Barnes, C. Clark).
