FREDERICK, MD – The York College men's basketball team, fresh off a tough overtime loss on Wednesday, put together a very strong road effort Saturday evening as they bounced Hood from the ranks of the Capital Athletic Conference unbeatens with a 70-64 win at the Odom Fitness Center at Ft. Detrick in Frederick, MD. The Spartans improve to 12-2 overall and 4-1 in the CAC while the Blazers fall to 8-5 and 3-1 in the league.

The Spartans started off the game with a quick five-point burst but the Blazers battled back to take a 20-14 lead with 4:01 remaining in the half. The Spartans outscored the hosts 14-3 over the final 3:55 of the half to take a 28-23 lead to the intermission.

The Blazers closed on the Spartans early in the second half as they took a 36-35 lead on a Reco Siler three-point play with 12:44 remaining in regulation. Sophomore Matt Moley (York, Pa./West York) converted a lay up followed by huge three pointers from Nick Brady (Hanover, Pa./Delone Catholic) and Kevin Whaley (Dover, Pa./Dover) giving the Spartans a 43-36 lead with just over ten minutes left in the game. Freshman Jeremy Skoloda (Leola, Pa./Conestoga Valley) capped the 12-0 run with a pair of free throws and a jumper as the Spartan lead grew to 47-36 with 9:02 showing on the clock.

The Blazers were not going to quit as they used a 12-4 run late in the game, trimming the York lead to two at 55-53 courtesy of a Tory Wilson three point play with 3:31 left.  The lead fluctuated between two and five points over the next three minutes before four free throws from both freshman Mo Oursler (Middletown, Md./Middletown) and Brady in the final 29 seconds secured the win for the Spartans.

Whaley led the Spartans with a very efficient 19 points. He was 7-for-12 from the floor including a blistering 4-for-5 from three. Whaley also had six rebounds, an assist and a steal in his 29 minutes of action. Brady contributed 17 points, six steals, and four rebounds for York. He was a clutch 8-for-9 from the charity stripe for York. Skoloda chipped in with eight points and four rebounds for the Green and White.

Wilson paced the Blazers with a double-double as he had 18 points and 10 rebounds in his 30 minutes of floor time. Wilson was 6-for-10 from the floor and 6-for-12 from the free throw line. Anthony Bennett added 13 points and six rebounds while Tyler Snoots was the third Blazer in double figures with 11 points in addition to eight rebounds. Siler pulled in 10 rebounds in addition to five points and three assists in the loss.

Neither team shot the ball particularly well from the floor as York converted 36.4% of their field goal attempts while Hood shot a smidge better at 37.3%. York was 5-for-16 (31.3%) from three while the Blazers were just 3-for-22 (13.6%) from distance. The Spartans won the game from the free throw line as they shot a respectable 71.4% (25-for-35) from the stripe while Hood was 17-for-27 (63%) at the line.

The Blazers handled the Spartans on the glass, outrebounding their guests 49-35 which led to 19 second chance points for Hood. York forced 23 Blazer miscues, which they turned into 14 points.

The Spartans conclude their three game road swing with a trip to Salisbury, MD to face the Salisbury University Sea Gulls in a conference contest. Tip time at the Maggs Center is set for 8:00 pm on Wednesday evening.

GAME BOX

Kevin Whaley photo courtesy of Zach Clabaugh