William Penn center Malik Hines went 7 for 7 from the field and scored 14 points in the Colonials’ win over Westinghouse (N.Y.) on Monday at Concord.
BRANDYWINE HUNDRED – The William Penn boys basketball team had every right to be a little apprehensive when taking on Westinghouse of Brooklyn, N.Y., on Monday.
The Colonials gave up the first five points, but quickly gathered themselves and pulled away, leading by as many as 19 before closing out an impressive, 63-55 victory at the Concord Classic.
“We were a little nervous, because we weren’t really aware of the players they had,” William Penn’s Malik Hines said. “But we calmed ourselves down and we worked through the game and treated them just like any other opponent, in-state or out-of-state.”
Hines, the Colonials’ 6-foot-5 center, pump-faked often inside against the taller Warriors and hit all seven of his shots from the field on the way to 14 points and six rebounds.
“Most guys who are pretty tall go for the first shot, because they just want to block everything,” Hines said. “So to overcome their height I used my brain, my intellect, to outsmart them and get the easy buckets.”
Westinghouse (10-3) looked dominant early, as Arsheen Jones splashed a 3-pointer and Damarri Moore hit a reverse layup on a fast break for a 5-0 lead just 1:36 into the game.
But William Penn (10-1), ranked fourth in Delaware, quickly settled down. Hines dropped a 15-footer, and Markee Johnson put back his own miss and scored off an assist from Ny’Jere Hodges to put the Colonials in front 6-5.
Johnson pump-faked for a layup, Daniel Walsh rattled in a 3-pointer off a screen and Hodges dropped a 3 of his own as William Penn built a 14-9 lead after one quarter.
“We saw them on film, and we knew they were really good,” Colonials coach Steve Christensen said of Westinghouse. “They’ve got great athletes, a couple of high-level players. So we tried to come up with a game plan, and I think the kids executed well. More importantly, I think the kids just believed in it.”
There was plenty of reason to believe when William Penn scored the last seven points of the first half. Dasir King drove for a layup, and Jermal Crumel turned a steal into a layup and swished a 3 from the left corner to send the Colonials into the locker room up 29-17.
William Penn kept it going in the second half. Hines hit a mid-range jumper, Johnson scored a layup off an inbounds play and Walsh splashed another 3-pointer to make it 36-17, the Colonials’ biggest lead of the day.
Westinghouse tried to get back in it, but the Warriors hit only 3 of 12 behind the 3-point line.
“We played disciplined,” Christensen said. “We kept them outside on the perimeter, we made them shoot jump shots, and then we tried to box out. I thought that was the key to the game, just keeping them on the outside.”
Johnson led William Penn with 20 points. Walsh added 13, and Crumel collected seven points and eight rebounds. Akeem Tate led Westinghouse with 24 points.
Contact Brad Myers at bmyers@delawareonline.com. Follow on Twitter: @BradMyersTNJ