Downingtown West turns up the defense in win over Upper Dublin
UPPER DUBLIN >> The defense arrived for Downingtown West on Tuesday night.
“We came out kinda slow on defense in our first game but we got some practice on getting lower and we locked up tonight,” the Whippets’ Jackson Luneberg said.
West limited Upper Dublin to just seven points in a pivotal second quarter, pulling away to a 54-47 non-league win over the Cardinals.
“It feels good to get that first one,” Luneberg said.
West (1-1) trailed 14-6 early but went into the locker room holding an eight-point lead at the break. Open shots became fewer and fewer for the Cardinals (2-1).
“Ultimately, what turned it around was our pace,” Luneberg said. “My energy, our energy picked up.”
Luneberg was difficult to shake.
“I felt good coming out. I just tried to play the best defense I could, chase everybody and play hard,” he said.
With the defense in control, West worked its magic on the offensive end.
A 23-point second quarter pushed momentum the Whippets’ way. Will Howard led the way for West with 17 points in the contest, Dylan Blair had 14 and Ryan Dever added nine.
The Whippets were finding each other cutting to the basket and also hitting from the outside, connecting on four 3-pointers.
Upper Dublin got a game-high 19 points from Drew Stover.
“We just didn’t really come together defensively,” Stover said. “We were missing some rebounds, and on offense we weren’t really working together as well as we did in the first quarter. And we kinda broke down in the second half.”
West stretched its lead to double digits in the third quarter and led by at least seven the rest of the way.
Downingtown West 54, Upper Dublin 47
Downingtown West 6 23 14 11 – 54
Upper Dublin 14 7 10 16 – 47
D-West: Dylan Blair 2 9-11 14, Hunter Blair 2 0-0 4, Ryan Dever 2 4-6 9, Will Howard 7 1-2 17, Jackson Luneberg 2 2-4 6, Drew Shelton 1 2-3 4. Totals 16 18-26 54.
Upper Dublin: Bazel Brady 3 4-6 11, Drew Stover 8 2-3 19, Will Mead 4 0-0 9, Amare Johnson 1 2-2 4, Aidan Pullian 1 2-2 4. Totals 17 10-13 47.
3-pointers: D-Blair, Dever, Howard 2; UD-Brady, Stover, Mead.
