McCole drops 32 points as Downingtown West routs West Chester East
WEST GOSHEN >> In a battle for second place in the Ches-Mont League National Division Thursday night, the visiting Downingtown West Whippets led from start to finish and completely shut down West Chester East in a convincing 66-44 win.
Cam McCole exploded for 32 points for the Whippets (4-1 league, 5-5 overall) and Will Howard chipped in with 12 points while Naseem Roberson added 12 to go along with his three steals and excellent point guard play.
“We work the high low offense very well,” McCole said. “Will Howard and Naseem and get me the ball in good spots and that is what happened tonight. My game is to move without the ball and get open and take entry passes. We really prepared well for them. We did not have a game Tuesday night and we practiced well and worked on some film. We tried to limit (Andrew) Carr and keep him away from the basket and watch Tym Richardson because he really likes to get his shot and he can get really hot.”
Carr and Richardson led the Vikings with 14 points each, but many of them came when the outcome was already decided. West Chester East (3-2, 9-2) turned the ball over 11 times in the contest and did not shoot well, going 18 for 49 from the field. West Chester East also had trouble defensively as Downingtown West consistently got penetration inside paint.
Downingtown West also got out early on the Vikings, jetting out to a 16-9 lead after one quarter and a 31-17 edge at halftime. McCole had 12 points at halftime and Roberson scored four straight points late in the second to forge the Whippets’ advantage.The Whippets were 13 for 27 from he field in the first half and only turned the ball over three times.
Carr came right out in the third quarter and hit a medium range jumper to make it a 31-19 game and after Richardson drained a very deep three, it looked like the Vikings would get back in the game. But, Howard drained the second of his two threes and McCole scored in tight to make it a 37-22 game.
“We did not play Tuesday and that helped us get over a tough loss to Wilson,” Downingtown West coach Stu Ross said. “We have been running the high low offense since I have been here to take advantage of our big guys. And Cam played a great game along with Will. And Naseem played another strong game with a lot of energy. We had time to prepare for West Chester East and we knew Carr likes to play with his back to the basket, so we tried to take that away and I thought we did a real good job of it. Hopefully a big win like this can get us going as we head into the second half of the season.”
Downingtown West put the hammer down in the fourth quarter, shooting five for eight from the field to finish off a hot 23 for 46, (50 percent) night from the field. When Howard threw down a big slam dunk midway through the fourth quarter, that was it for the Vikings’ comeback hopes and Downingtown West had a very important National Division win. The Whippets are now just a half game behind division leading Coatesville in the league race.
“I feel that me and Cole are one of the best, if not the best big man tandem in the Ches-Mont,” Howard said. “And tonight we got out on them early and just ran our offense like we practiced it.”
Downingtown West 66, West Chester East 44
Downingtown West 16 15 18 16 – 66
WC East 9 8 18 9 – 44
DOWNINGTOWN WEST (66): McCole 13 5-5 32, Howard 5 0-0 12, Roberson 4 4-4 12, Kaiser 1 2-4 5, Blair 1 1-2 3, Hillsinger 0 0-0 0, Shelton 0 0-0 0, Spann 0 2-2 2. Totals 23 13-15 66.
WC EAST (44): Richardson 5 3-3 14, Carr 6 1-2 14, Delaney 2 0- 14, Kushner 2 0-0 5, Dedda 1 0-0 2, merten 0 0-0 0, Trowery 2 0-0 5, Anderson 0 0-1 0. Totals 18 4-6 44.
3-point goals: Carr, Richardson, Kushner, Trowery, Howard 2, Kaiser, McCole, Roberson.
