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Millionaire boys to District 2-4 AAAAAA final

BERWICK — When the pressure rises, Marcus Simmons’ blood pressure seems like it drops. The bigger the moment, the better he often plays.

And when Williamsport is protecting a late lead, Brian Duvall often helps seal the win, providing smothering defense. Satur­day at Berwick, Simmons ignited a comeback with a clutch 3-pointer and Duvall played the closer as Wil­liamsport survived a serious scare and reached a second straight district championship.

Simmons had a hand in five straight points that put Williamsport ahead to stay and Duvall forced three turnovers over the final 90 seconds as Williamsport rallied past Delaware Val­ey and won its District 2-4 Class AAAAAA semifinal, 52-45. The Millionaires (19-4) outscored Delaware Valley 11-5 over the game’s final 4 1/2 minutes, overcame foul trouble to Division I recruit Stanley Scott and the absence of starter Qay­yim Ali who was competing at the indoor state track and field championships.

“I think in those types of situations I’m a man that can take the shot and become a leader,” Simmons said. “We wanted to go out and play with more energy and we got it done.”

“I thought we were kind of down so I knew we had to play good defense to get us some points,” Duvall said. “I went out and played my best defense and let my teammates finish it off with some points.”

Williamsport, which won its 12th straight, stormed out to a 9-0 lead 90 seconds into the game, but Dela­ware Valley (13-10) weathered that storm, built a 28-22 halftime lead and extended it to 32-25 early in the third quarter. The Millionaires rallied later in the quarter and the lead changed hands repeatedly with the War­riors going up 42-41 with five minutes remaining.

That was when Sim­mons struck. The sophomore has shined in big moments all year and is a big reason Williamsport won close games at Abing­ton Heights and State Col­lege and home games vs. Harrisburg and Loyalsock. This time worked his way open at the top of the key and drained a 3-pointer that gave Williamsport a 44-42 lead it never relinquished. A possession later, Simmons made a nice pass inside, feeding Rondell Car­son for a layup that gave Williams­port a four-point lead. He also grabbed three of his six rebounds in the game’s final four minutes.

“Stan was out in foul trouble, so I felt like I had to step up and hit a shot,” Simmons said. “I waited for my opportunity in the flow of the offense and I got my look and I knocked it down.”

“Marcus has been clutch for us throughout the course of the season. Early in the season he made some clutch plays for us and he’s continued to grow and we need him to continue to grow,” Williamsport coach Allen Taylor said. “There’s a few things he could do better, but a lot of things he does well, particularly in crunch time and that’s when it’s most important. When the game is on the line he usually finds a way to make a big play for us.”

So does Duvall, who has become one of the area’s premier defenders. While Simmons provided the offensive jolt Williams­port needed, Duvall changed the game’s complexion with his stifling defense. Duvall, a lanky and tenacious defender, forced a 10-second call, made a steal and swatted a ball away that Al-Tamar Jason stole, all in the final 90 seconds.

Duvall finished with three steals and his pressure was a game-changer. Duvall hounded the point guard in the closing minutes and Delaware Valley struggled with turnovers as well as having trouble setting up its offense.

“It shows a lot of what I can do on the defensive end. My teammates have offensive skills but I’m more of a defensive player and that helps us,” Duvall said. “When you play good defense it can turn into points on the offensive side and that helps us win.”

“He made it very difficult for them to initiate their offense and he wants that responsibility. He wants that job,” Taylor said. “Whoever the best ball-handler is he wants him. Very few people want that responsibility but he asks for it. He disrupted their timing and allowed to get us into passing lanes and get steals and forced them into making decisions they’re not accustomed to.”

Protecting a four-point lead, Scott grabbed a rebound off a missed free throw and a foul was called seconds later. Scott dribbled toward the basket as players often do but before he reached there, a Delaware Valley player shoved him hard to the ground. The play happened directly in front of a referee and Scott could have been hurt on the play but no flagrant or technical foul was called.

The dirty play could have created an ugly scene but Williamsport maintained its composure and Scott exacted the best revenge, helping to end Delaware Valley’s season. Scott hit both foul shots to make it 48-42 and, after the Warriors made it a 3-point game with 25 seconds left, the Division I recruit again calmly hit two foul shots. Tamar-Jason then clinched the win, hitting two straight foul shots in the final seconds.

Despite foul trouble and twice being knocked to the ground while in mid-air, Scott finished with 14 points and four assists. Delaware Valley could not intimidate Scott or his teammates who fought back harder.

“Situations like that gives us that chip on our shoulder,” Simmons said. “You just keep playing the game. It made us want to go out and beat them on the court and say we got the win. You guys are playing dirty but we got you the right way.”

Carson scored 10 points and grabbed seven rebounds for Williamsport. Tamar-Jason was excellent off the bench, scoring six points and making three steals while Darryl Wilson hit a big third-quarter 3-pointer. Brandon Campbell had five points and four rebounds starting in place of Ali as Williamsport earned a shot at winning its first district championship since 2013.

DELAWARE VALLEY (45)

Shane Acoveno 3 2-4 8, Tyler Smith 4 1-2 9, Blake Gearhart 0 4-8 4, Zach Klapak 2 0-0 6, Trevor Smith 4 1-1 9, Dylan Kelly 3 2-2 9. Totals 16 10-17 45.

WILLIAMSPORT (52)

Stanley Scott 3 8-10 14, Rondell Carson 5 0-1 10, Marcus Simmons 2 0-1 6, Brian Duvall 2 2-2 6, Darryl Wilson 1 0-0 3, Al-Tamar Jason 1 4-4 6, Brandon Campbell 1 3-4 5, Ethen Stryker 0 0-2 0, Keith Jason 1 0-0 2. Totals 16 17-24 52.

Delaware Valley 13 15 11 6–45

Williamsport 13 9 17 13–52

3-pointers: DV 3 (Tr. Smith 2, Kelly); Williamsport 3 (Simmons 2, Wilson).

Records: Williamsport 19-4. Delaware Valley 13-10.

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