By Terry Thomas
Chester stays undefeated
in the Del Val at 5-0 and 13-3 overall with a 76-65 victory over the Penn Wood
Patriots. The Patriots were excited to showcase their new floor but it could
not change the outcome. Coach Taylor is now 6-0 against Penn Wood. Akeem Taylor
Jr got the Clippers started with 8 of his 18 points in the first quarter
keeping the Chester within striking distance. With the Patriots hitting a trey
as the quarter closed, the Clippers trailed 13-15.
The Clippers started the
2nd quarter scoring with a three consecutive steals resulting in a 7-0 run
giving them the lead 20-15 at the 7:10 mark. Chester would not trail the rest
of the contest. With the Patriots starting the quarter with the ball, junior
Fareed Burton Jr stole the ball and senior Zahmir Carroll scored off an assist
from Taylor. On the Patriots next possession it was Taylor with steal and
finished with an old-fashioned three point play. Senior Rahmee Gilbert got in
the act with the next steal and finished with a layup. The Clippers used a
balanced offensive attack during the quarter with six players accounting for
the 19 point production. Karell Watkins and Taylor led the way with 5 points
each. Faheem Berry contributed a trey and Burton completed the scoring with a
bucket. At the intermission, it was Chester - 32, Penn Wood - 27.
The 3rd quarter was
dominated by Watkins on the offensive end with 12 of the Clippers 14 points and
Taylor's defensive work of 4 blocked shots and 2 steals. Taylor was also put in
the other 2 Chester points. The Clippers now led by seven, 46-39, going into
the final quarter.
The Clippers intensity
continued into the 4th quarter resulting in a 13-5 run giving them a 59-44
advantage at the 4:45 mark. Chester enjoyed their biggest lead of the game,
62-46, with 3:27 remaining. Again the Clippers used a balanced scoring attack
with six players scoring, Watkins led with 10 of his team high 28 points
followed by Burton with 8 of his 10. Carroll added 4 becoming the fourth
Clipper in double figures with 10. Berry added another 3-pointer and Gilbert
top off the scoring with 2 points. The Patriots attempt to slow the game down
by putting the Clippers on the free throw failed as Chester hit 13 of 14 free
throws in the final 8 minutes.
Watkins recorded another
double-double with 12 rebound; he also added 2 assists and 2 steals. To go
along with his 18 points, Taylor contributed 7 blocks, 7 rebounds, 5 assists
and 6 steals to his stat sheet. Carroll just missed a double-double with 8
rebounds; he also had 1 block and 1 steal. Junior point guard Burton lit up the
stat sheet with 2 assists, 2 blocks, 3 steals and 5 rebounds. High flying
Jahmaige Womack came off the bench to record 2 blocked shots.
The team totaled 16
assists on 28 made baskets and 12 blocked shots; it was the 3rd time this
season they totaled double digits blocks.
The Clippers continue
their road trip on Tuesday, January 28th when they travel to Sharon Hill to
take on the Academy Park Knights in Del Val League action. The JV will tip-off
at 5:30 with the Varsity to follow.
JV GAME RECAP
For the first time this
season, the Chester JV has loss back-to-back games falling 39-51 to the
Patriots. The team started slow trailing 15-28 at the half and did not recover.
Lenny Camacho was the lone double digit scorer with 13 points. The team's inability
to hit free throws in the fourth quarter, 3 of 12, allowed the Patriots
maintain their lead.