How big is this game for York Suburban?
The Trojans have never won a district title, and they have only appeared in one championship game, the last coming in 1985. Remember 1985? That's the year York Catholic coach Mike Keesey won his first district title, carried off the court by Gregg Baldassarre after he scored a game-high 23 points -- and notched his 1,000th point -- in the title game against Suburban. The York Daily Record reporter covering the game happened to be Ken Rosenthal, who went on to write for the Baltimore Sun and Sporting News before taking on his current gig as a on-field reporter for the Major League Baseball broadcasts on Fox.
Click on the link for up-to-the-quarter updates on the showdown between York Suburban (23-3) and Wyomissing (20-5).
History has been made. But it didn't look easy. York Suburan won its first district title after Mitch Kemp hit a 3-pointer by draining a shot about 3 feet behind the arc in the final seconds. Officials reset the clock to .2 seconds after Wyomissing called a timeout, but a desperation 3-pointer by Wyomissing's Edward Early only hit backboard.
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Laughing, hands extended at his side, Suburban's Mitch Kemp ran down the floor after hitting a monster 3-pointer with 1.5 seconds to play. The horn sounded, but officials have added .2 seconds back on the clock.
Suburban leads 48-45.
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York Suburban will hold for the final shot with 54 seconds to play.
Tied 45-45, Suburban coach Tom Triggs has called a timeout with 12 seconds to play in the fourth quarter.
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Ryan Kinard has given the Trojans the lead, stealing the ball and going the length of the court to earn a shot at the charity stripe. Up 40-39 with a little more than four minutes to play, Suburban caused another turnover. And that's when Byron Thompson hit a runner. Suburban leads 42-41 with 3:19 to play.
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How does Suburban hope to play with Wyomissing? It seems clear now. They want to hit the outside shot. Kevin Donahue added a 3-pointer and the Trojans trail by two with 5:24 to play.
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Suburban's Mitch Kemp hit a 3-pointer in the opening minute of the fourth quarter to keep Suburban in the game. Wyomissing leads 37-32 with 7:08 to play.
Wyomissing has outrebounded Suburban 32-11 in the game.
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The crowd for Thursday's tripleheader at Hershey's Giant Center has been announced at 3,374.
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It has been a difficult third quarter for the Trojans. Suburban has been outmuscled in the paint and Wyomissing has outscored them 14-8 in the quarter. Sean Hinnenkamp missed an open 3-pointer from the corner at the buzzer, and Wyomissing holds a 32-29 advantage.
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The momentum has shifted. Wyomissing has continued to dominate the glass and took a brief 28-27 lead. But Suburban's Kevin Donahue managed to hit a putback jumper at the other end of the floor to give the Trojans a 29-28 lead.
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Thomas McInerney picked up his third personal foul in the opening minute of the second half. He has been replaced in the lineup by Roland Boyer.
It has been all Wyomissing in the third quarter, but they still trail 21-20 with 6:30 to play.
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Mitch Kemp may end up being the difference-maker in the championship game, he has scored a game-high nine points in the first half -- including a long 3-pointer from the wing. And while Wyomissing looks like a fundamental, polished team at times -- it has shown one big weakness. It can't hold onto the ball. It has turned the ball over 12 times to Suburban's seven.
So even though it owned the boards, posting a 15-8 advantage off the glass and added another two blocked shots, it has been forced to play catch-up.
The one difference seems to be energy. York Suburban has more energy and has controlled the tempo. Cole Wagner has scored just two points, but he always seems to be pushing the ball up the court.
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Suburban built a 21-14 lead in the second quarter, but Wyomissing has managed to cut Suburban's lead to 21-18 at halftime.
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Suburban takes a 12-10 lead with 6:41 to play in the second quarter on a pair of free throws by Ryan Kinard.
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Knotted at 8-8 after the first quarter, York Suburban has found itself in foul trouble in the opening minutes. Thomas McInerney sat out a portion of the first period with two fouls. McInerney is the team's second option on offense, and he scored in double figures in two of Suburban's last two playoff games.
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