Just 72 seconds later, he returned. And Hill brought the noise from that point on at the Catholic Community Center, turning it up especially high in the fourth quarter.

Hill made five fourth-quarter steals and added four assists in four spectacular fourth-quarter minutes, helping St. John Neumann finally put away pesky Sullivan County. Hill scored 22 points, Hanief Clay added a game-high 26 and Neumann defeated the rival Griffins, 63-40, winning a seventh consecutive game and clinching an 11th straight District 4 Class A playoff berth.

“I was definitely cringing,” Neumann coach Jamie Spencer said. “But that kid’s pain tolerance is just unbelievable. It’s unreal. He rolled his ankle pretty good but the next thing you know he just laces them up and goes back in there.”

When Hill exited, Neumann (11-2, 8-0 Mid-Penn) led by just seven. He re-entered with 5 minutes, 43 seconds remaining in the third quarter, promptly drained a foul-line extended jumper and ignited an 8-0 run. Sullivan (3-7) kept battling but never pulled within single digits again.

Davion Hill goes up for a slam dunk against Sullivan County at Saint John Neumann Jan 26, 2022. DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette

“It was definitely important for me to get back in,” Hill said. “(Sullivan coach) Glenn (Vaughan) always has them coached up and they always play hard, so I definitely had to get back in so we could put the game away.”

A Division I recruit with multiple offers, including from Maryland, Hill unleashed his entire arsenal to help make that happen. The two-time first team all-state guard leads the area in scoring, producing 27 points per game, but it was all the other aspects of his game which overwhelmed Sullivan in the fourth quarter.

In the first four minutes, his defense and distribution helped Neumann land the knockout blow. Hill made two quick steals to open the quarter, each producing points. And even when his sore ankle prevented him from getting the height he needed on a missed dunk, Hill hustled back, made another steal and fed Clay for a layup. An all-state running back in football, Hill looked more like a quarterback in the fourth quarter, seeing the court like Tom Brady and setting up three different players for easy baskets.

Oh yeah, Hill still scored as well, doing so off an offensive putback and by beating two defenders off the dribble. By the time the four-minute flurry was over, Neumann led by 23 and was on its way to another victory.

“I’m definitely more than just a scorer. I like to set up my teammates and get them involved and distribute the ball,” Hill said. “Even if they have a team where the record doesn’t show it, every time they come here or every time we go there they definitely give us a tough time.”

Hanief Clay of Neumann puts up a shot against Sullivan County at Saint John Neumann Jan 26, 2022. DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette

Sullivan immediately showed Neumann it was in for another battle Wednesday. The Griffins scored 10 quick points and built a 10-2 lead three minutes in, forcing Spencer to take a timeout. Neumann fought back and the lead changed hands four times before it went up to stay 19-17. That lead grew to 12 midway through the second quarter, but the Griffins closed strong and cut it to 33-26 at halftime.

Sullivan executed its offense especially well during the first quarter, but turnovers started becoming a recurring theme and changed the game’s complexion. The Griffins lost 26 turnovers, including five straight to open the second quarter. Sullivan had a chance to pull within five early in the third quarter but lost another turnover and Hill’s return ignited another spurt as the Griffins fell into desperate times.

“When they went on their run we got into playing a game and a style that we’re not necessarily great at. The turnovers were everything. A lot of the liveball turnovers they got turned into layups,” Vaughan said. “It’s a two-way street. The guy with the ball is dribbling too much and doesn’t see open teammates, but his teammates also have to move and can’t watch the guy dribble. Spectators don’t play good basketball.”

Unfortunately, Sullivan has had to play the spectator role a lot this season. The Griffins were shut down for two weeks in December and different circumstances have led it to going at least a week without playing four times this month. For a team with three new starters and just three players with significant varsity experience entering the season, that has made things even tougher.

Still, Sullivan showed its promise by playing Neumann tough into the fourth quarter. The Griffins defense gave Neumann problems at times and Riley King and Bryon Fitzgerald each scored nine points. Trey Higley added eight points and six rebounds and Ben Carpenter grabbed seven boards.

Hanief Clay of Neumann puts up a shot against Sullivan County at Saint John Neumann Jan 26, 2022. DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette

“I’m very happy with the mental and emotional effort coming into the game and preparation and things like that,” Vaughan said. “It’s been tough for us to find that rhythm. Now we have three straight three-game weeks and that comes after a game Saturday, so hopefully that rhythm will come. We have a lot of games coming up, so we’re going to be asking guys to step up and play a lot of minutes and hopefully we can get the win-loss record back to where we expect it to be at our program.”

Clay played a large role in Sullivan not improving that record Wednesday. The dynamic point guard again was potent off the dribble, made some key mid-range jumpers and grabbed eight rebounds. Clay also made three steals and he and Hill both went over 20 points together for a sixth straight game.

JerVal Weeks-Shuler, however, may have been the first-half’s biggest difference-maker. The senior forward relentlessly attacked the boards, grabbing eight of his 10 rebounds. Five of those rebounds were offensive and the second and third-chance opportunities sparked Neumann, as did his two assists and two steals. He also finished well around the basket and scored five points.

“He was unbelievable,” Spencer said. “When he gets a little confident about his shots around the rim he’s another dynamic.”

“He doesn’t get as much attention or recognition that he should quite honestly,” Hill said. “He’s in there fighting the whole game, every minute of every game. He’s helping us a lot.”

Davion Hill of Neumann passes over the Sullivan County defenders at Saint John Neumann Jan 26, 2022. Neumann won 63-40. DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette

Naseer Dymeck, Naz Smith and Joe Savage are as well and also played key roles against Sullivan. Dymeck scored five first-quarter points and made two steals, helping ignite the comeback. Smith was terrific off the bench, making a game-high six steals and Savage grabbed five rebounds. Chase Wright helped put an exclamation point on the victory, hitting a late 3-pointer.

“Sullivan always plays hard and is coached well. They really scrapped. They got off to a good start and we really had to work with it,” Spencer said. “It doesn’t matter who they have or what they have and that’s a testament to Glenn. I have so much respect for him.”

SULLIVAN (40)

Riley Knig 4 0-0 9, Trey Higley 4 0-1 8, Bryon Fitzgerald 4 0-0 9, Ben Carpenter 2 0-0 5, Maddox Bahr 1 0-0 2, Landon Baldwin 2 0-1 4, Enrico Capriotti 1 0-0 3. Totals 18 0-2 40.

NEUMANN (63)

Davion Hill 9 1-1 22, Hanief Clay 13 0-0 26, Naseer Dymeck 2 1-4 5, Joe Savage 0 0-0 0, JerVal Weeks-Shuler 2 1-2 5, Naz Smith 1 0-0 2, Chase Wright 1 0-0 3. Totals 28 3-7 63.

Sullivan 17 9 2 12 — 40

Neumann 19 14 10 20 — 63

3-point goals: Sullivan 4 (King 1, Fitzgerald 1, Carpenter 1, Capriotti 1), Neumann 4 (Hill 3, Wright 1).

Records: Neumann (11-2), Sullivan County (3-7).