Mineral Point JV vs. Darlington
Under the Friday night lights, the Pointers and the Darlington Redbirds faced off in a high motor game, one of the biggest conference games this year for the Mineral Point JV. The pressure was on! The Redbirds have been the Pointers’ rivals for as long as anyone can remember.
Right off the bat, this would be a high-intensity matchup for both the Pointers and the Redbirds. As soon as the ball hit the ground, both teams were talking, both crowds were chanting and clapping, and both teams’ mentality was to destroy the other.
The first bucket was a field goal scored by Keaton Demsey with a drive and kick assist from the point guard, Grady Finley. Mineral Point has been depending on Keaton’s three-point shooting for the season, and he needed to keep his shot consistent throughout this game if the Pointers wanted to win. “I knew this would be a big game with an exciting atmosphere. We were playing a rival, and I wanted to do my best to affect the game positively. Kind of try to set the mood for the following varsity game.” stated Dempsey.
As the first half went on, other players were getting rotated in and getting a chance to show what they’ve got against tough competition. Hudson Schroder had gritty defense in the post and had a great deal of rebounds. Brett Bossert had quick ball movement and sunk an open three, a clutch shot that would shorten the pointers’ deficit to 12 points at the end of the half.
Redbirds Grady O’Brien and Alan Merriam were getting tons of open looks and pierced Mineral Points’ defense multiple times. O’Brien and Merriam contributed to an impressive 15 of the Redbirds’ 29 points exiting the half.
Entering the second half, Darlington only extended the lead by rushing to the hoop two times in a row. Both layups were from Merriam. The Pointers defense was not looking good and the game was falling apart for them. As the half continued, Brett Bossert had an astonishing 15 points just in the second half. Keaton Dempsey also had a heavy 14 points and made a great attempt to come back. The game got closer and closer, but the Pointers couldn’t finish as the Redbirds defeated the Pointers 68-58.
