Timely Turnaround
SLIPPERY ROCK — Slippery Rock’s boys basketball team had a number of reasons for wanting to close out Region 4 play with a victory against Hickory Tuesday night, not the least of which was to avenge a 29-point loss a month ago.
This time, it was the Hornets who felt the sting of a team hitting on all cylinders.
The Rockets shot 70 percent (12 of 17) from the field in the second half and senior John Sabo paved the way to victory with a game-high 28 points as Slippery Rock earned a 67-56 win.
“We took much better care of the ball tonight,” said SR coach AJ Motta after watching his team turn the ball over just 10 times. “In the first game, we had eight straight turnovers to begin the game.
“But a lot of things went into tonight’s effort. We also played better defensively. Man, I’m just so proud of these guys! We made a huge statement tonight.”
The playoff-bound Rockets (11-9, 9-5) led 43-37 after three quarters and put the game away due in large part from the free throw line. They were 13 of 18 from the stripe in the final eight minutes. Sabo made seven of his eight attempts.
“For most of the season, his percentage was in the low-to-mid 50s,” Motta said of Sabo’s free throws, “but in the last five games, he’s really come on.”
Sabo added three field goals in the final quarter to help keep the Hornets (13-7, 9-4) at bay.
“He did a good job of getting to the basket against our zone defense,” said Hickory coach Chris Mele. “Defensively, we didn’t play well and have been in a funk for a while. This is a bad time of the year for that.”
When Tyson Djakovich drained a 3-pointer for Hickory with 2:20 left in the first half, the Hornets were up 23-19. But the Rockets closed with a 7-0 run, including Walker Vogan’s basket at the buzzer, to lead 26-23 at the break.
Dylan Gordon added 12 points for Slippery Rock.
Djakovich paced Hickory with 21 points and Joe Fazzone added 16.
The Rockets have two games left before the District 10 playoffs — at Fort LeBoeuf Wednesday and at Moniteau Saturday.
“We have a lot of confidence right now,” Sabo said. “We’re playing our best basketball of the season and just want to keep it going.”
HICKORY 56
Aiden Enoch 2 0-0 6, Tyler Mele 4 1-3 9, Joe Fazzone 6 4-7 16, Tyson Djakovich 6 5-5 21, Jackson Pryts 1 0-0 2, Devin Daniels 1 0-0 2, Christian Evangelista 0 0-0 0. Totals: 20 10-15 56.
SLIPPERY ROCK 67
Brady Prementine 0 5-8 5, John Sabo 8 10-12 28, Dylan Gordon 5 0-0 12, Shane Thompson 2 1-2 6, Jacob Wolak 3 1-2 7, Walker Vogan 3 0-0 6, Elam Pyle 1 0-0 3. Totals: 22 17-24 67.
Hickory 11 12 14 19 — 56
Slippery Rock 8 18 17 24 — 67
3-point goals: Hickory 6 (Djakovich 4, Enoch 2); Slippery Rock 6 (Sabo 2, Gordon 2, Thompson, Pyle).
Wednesday: Slippery Rock at Fort LeBoeuf
