“At this point we will take it any way we can get it,” was Bellwood-Antis head boys basketball coach Tim Keech comment following the Blue Devils’ first win of the 2003-04 season. After a slow, low scoring first half, both teams came out shooting in the second half before Bellwood-Antis senior Shaw Weiand drilled a three-point shot that touched nothing but the bottom of the net to tie the game in regulation 42-42 with 0:01.4 to play.
In the overtime that followed, Weiand popped in another trey, three of four free throws and a bank shot that gave Bellwood-Antis the lead for the final time with 8.8 seconds on the overtime clock. Weiand’s final two free throws closed out the scoring in a 53-49 win that was the Blue Devils first victory of the year after opening the season 0-4.
Bellwood-Antis jumped out in front 3-0 the opening quarter on a Paul Greiner free throw and Matt Plummer basket and the very low scoring quarter ended with B-A in front 7-6.
Plummer pulled down an offensive rebound and put the shot back up for a bucket to give the Blue Devils a 9-7 advantage and a steal and layup by Greiner gave B-A a 13-9 advantage, the biggest lead either team would get for the remainder of the game.
Led by clutch foul shooting by Bill Peoples and Rich Ball, who both sank five of six, Glendale fought back to take a 17-15 lead into the locker room at halftime.
Weiand hit a short basket to tie the score at 17-17, in the third period, then poured in a three-pointer and another basket as the lead changed hands several times. Greiner’s bucket gave the Blue Devils a 26-25 margin and Weiand, who finished as high scorer for both teams with 27 points, after getting just two in the first half, added a bucket for a three-point lead, but at the end of three quarters, it was dead-even 28-28.
“I took Shawn out for awhile in the second quarter,” said Keech. “I thought he was forcing things. I just went with a younger lineup. I thought those younger kids really did a nice job in keeping us in the game. At halftime, it was 17-15, we were only down two and played a lot of younger kids. I told him at halftime, ‘Shawn you’ve just got to relax, relax and take your shots in the flow of the offense.’ I mean he’s obviously a senior, a returning letterman who had a good year last year until the appendix thing. He might be pushing a little bit this year. He does not have the supporting cast around him that he had last year. The shots are going to come, but they have to be in the flow of the game. He doesn’t really have to create and make things happen. Things will happen on their own if he just relaxes a bit.”
Weiand picked up his fourth foul with 7:21 to play in the fourth quarter, but was able to finish the game without drawing his fifth.
Aaron Bell fed Greiner for a bucket and then went coast-to-coast for a lay-up to jump the B-A lead to 32-29 and then after Glendale scored, answered with another basket. Weiand pumped in a long jumper for three to lead 34-31 and Greiner put the Blue Devils ahead again (39-37) with a short jumper as the two teams went after each other with no holds barred. Peoples grabbed a rebound and basket to pull the Vikings into a 40-39 advantage and Scott Laing hit two free throws with 18.8 left in regulation to give Glendale a three-point margin 42-29.
Weiand calmly sank the trey with just over one second to play and the game went to overtime.
Peoples fouled out with two minutes remaining and Greiner drilled two foul shots to give B-A the 44-43 lead. Weiand then took command. Shawn sank a three-pointer and after Mark Yeckley tied the score, Weiand and Bell each added one of two free throws, Weiand hit a short banker and finalized the Blue Devils first win with a pair of foul shots.
Paul Greiner backed up Weiand’s 27 points with 14 points and 12 rebounds.
Peoples led Glendale with 13 points, Yeckley had 12 and Laing had 10.
“One win is one win and we really needed it tonight,” said Keech. I think it would have been an extremely difficult situation at practice tomorrow if we hadn’t been able to find a way to win this game and had to come in at 0-5.”
Glendale won the junior varsity game 42-19 behind 19 points by Billy Ball.
Brandon Boone led Bellwood-Antis with five points and three rebounds.
Bellwood-Antis will travel to Alexandria on Thursday for a game with Juniata Valley. Junior varsity action will begin at 6 p.m.
Bellwood-Antis 53 Glendale 49 OT
BELLWOOD-ANTIS – Bell 2 1-2 5, McClellan 0 1-2 1, Weiand 10 3-5 27, DelGrosso 0 0-0 0, Greiner 5 4-6 14, Plummer 2 0-0 4, Edmiston 0 0-0 0, Seidel 0 0-0 0, Blazier 0 0-0 0, Brunner 0 0-0 0. TOTALS 20 9-15 53.
GLENDALE – Peoples 4 5-6 13, Kauffman 4 0-0 8, Laing 3 2-4 10, Hollis 0 0-0 0, Yeckley 3 6-12 12, Lyons 0 5-6 5, R. Ball 0 1-2 1, Krestar 1 0-0 2. 15 19-30 49.
Score by Quarters
Bellwood-Antis 7 8 13 14 11 – 53
Glendale 6 11 11 14 7 – 49
Three point goals: Bellwood-Antis 4 (Weiand 4).
Glendale 0.
