The Ritztown High School tournament served up an easy opponent for the Newton County High School Steelworkers in game two, and the Steelworkers opted to take it easy on them in the first half.
Partially drained by a rough game against Ziegfried High earlier in the day, the Workers treated defense as optional for several first-half stretches and couldn't seem to solve cross-court screens that opened up clean layups. As a result, the Ditchfield Donkeys accumulated 19 points by the break, after failing to break 15 until the fourth quarter of their opening game.
"That was not Steelworker basketball," said the NCHS head coach among other comments with the calm of a man covered by fire ants.
The half time tongue-lashing worked. With temperatures in the four-court dome falling in the late afternoon as the heater shut off, Newton County froze Ditchfield's offense to the tune of a 1-point third quarter.
With a 15 point lead to start the fourth quarter, the entire bench saw significant minutes. The closest thing to drama was when Bert Watcher inadvertently felled his own teammate Willie Makit with an ill-fated knee to the groin.
The 2 1/2 hour bus trip home was a joyful one, capping a day that begin with a departure from the NCHS lot at 8:45 a.m., and the team arrived home by 10:00 p.m. Following an off day Sunday, the team will make the same round trip on Monday for another double-header.
The Steelworkers yield just 38 points per game, well below the team goal of 50.
"We're pleased to be 11-1, but more focused on getting better as players, people and a team," the coach added. "Our teams have peaked before at this point. We're halfway done, and need to find our way to the next level."
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