Freshmen Come Up Big in Mechanics Win

Down several key players yet again due to injuries, Williamson Hall of Fame head coach Bill Michaels knew he would have to rely heavily in his freshmen in an attempt to upend backyard opponent Delaware County Community College.  To his delight, a trio of freshmen stepped things up and allowed the Mechanics to pull away late in the second half, in a 64-57 win over the Phantoms.

Williamson started slow and actually found themselves down by ten points at 30-20 midway thought the first half before eventually cutting the deficit to six at half, 33-27.

Williamson then kicked things up into high gear in the second half, as they slowly began to chip away at things before a jumper by Abdoulaye Diallo gave them their first lead at 42-40 at the 14:02 left.  The teams went through three lead changes after that before a three-pointer by Diallo gave Williamson its biggest lead of the game to that point at 52-48 with 8:41 left. Fellow freshman Ronald Johnson then hit a key jumper at the 6:14 mark to give Williamson some breathing room at 57-50.   

The Phantoms were not about to go away, as they continued to fight but some great defensive pressure down the stretch by Williamson, and some key free throws by freshman Liam Rardin put things away for good and allowed Williamson to for the third time in their last four games.

The trio of Johnson, Diallo and Rardin proved to be the difference for Williamson.  Johnson had his best game to date, leading the way with 19 points, going 9-15 from the floor.  He also added five rebounds.  Diallo had 18 points, five rebounds and two assists.  Rardin had a monster game on the boards, as he pulled down 11 rebounds and blocked three shots.  He also added 15 points and two assists. 

For the game, Williamson was able to hold DCCC to 35.6% shooting from the floor, as well as force 17 turnovers. 

"It is a nice win for us.  We matured a bit during the game and our young guys proved the moment was not too big for them," shared Michaels.  "Our crowd was a huge factor as well.  They truly were the sixth man tonight for us. They were fantastic."

Williamson gets right back into action tomorrow night at 5:00 P.M. as they take on Manor College in the first round of the Roadrunner Classic tournament, hosted by Rowan College at Gloucester County.