Boys Basketball: Darley’s Clutch Shooting Pushes Dulaney Past Patapsco

After cutting a 10-point fourth quarter lead to one with about three minutes left to play, it seemed the Patapsco Patriots were poised to complete the comeback and earn their 15^th win of the season.

Dulaney guard Will Darley had other plans.

Darley scored the Lions’ final eight points, including an off-balance three-pointer with less than 25 seconds remaining, to secure a 56-53 victory—their second in as many days. He finished with a game-high 22 points while playing one of his better defensive games of the year.

“Will and I have gotten extremely close this season. We have a sense of trust,” Dulaney head coach Matt Lochte said. “That shot could have been ill-advised, but you know what? He turns around, knocks the shot down, seals the game.”

Dulaney overcame its third-quarter struggles from the past two games in which it combined to score just eight points. Wednesday night the team eclipsed that mark, scoring 12 points in the period.

The scoring increase came, in part, thanks to physical play, which the Lions exhibited throughout the game. They took advantage of a Patriot bench with little depth. Only seven players played, with six contributing the majority of the minutes—by using frequent substitutes and using an up-tempo offense.

Patapsco head coach Will Marshall was still pleased with his teams’ energy heading into the fourth quarter. And with Dulaney guard Kyle Williams injured on the bench and Justin Armstrong playing with a slight injury, the Lions weren’t able to pull away. Their offense slowed early in the fourth quarter, allowing the Patriots (14-4) to have their strongest quarter of the game.

They started the period with an 11-3 run, led by Rowland Hailey’s five points, to bring the score within a point, 48-47. It was the closest the score had been since Dulaney took an 18-17 lead at the end of the first quarter. That’s when Darley stepped up.

The 6-foot-3 junior started with a three-pointer from about a foot beyond the arc. He followed that with a layup, giving the Lions a six-point cushion. Patapsco answered with two baskets of their own, bringing the Dulaney lead back down to two points and prompting a Dulaney timeout with 1:04 left on the clock.

As Dulaney (7-12) ran its offense, Darley ran to receive a pass at the top of the arc. Even though his defender was close in pursuit, he allowed his momentum to carry him into a leaning shot which completed his perfect three-for-three shooting down the stretch, and the win for the Lions.

“I was just confident in my shot,” Darley said. “I thought I had an open look so I took it and luckily I knocked it down.”