Underdogs to Upset
The West Delaware Boys Basketball team upsets the sixth ranked class 3A Williamsburg Raiders.
After being introduced as a starter, senior Hayden Lyness high fives his teammates
January 13, 2023
One word – Upset.
On Tuesday, January 10, the West Delaware Boys Basketball team, 7-4, pulled off a 61-42 upset victory over the Class 3A sixth-ranked Williamsburg Raiders, 7-1, inside Seedorff Gymnasium.
Coming off a 1-2 week, which included non-conference losses to Dyersville Beckman and Dubuque Wahlert, the Hawks showed no signs of letting those losses affect them. They quickly jumped to a 15-2 first-quarter lead, including three-pointers from seniors Bryce Smith and Hayden Lyness. Williamsburg’s only two points came from a Derek Weisskopf dunk after stealing the ball from sophomore guard Griffin Lott.
Getting defensive stops, pushing in transition, hitting threes, and moving the ball around offensively were constant themes all night and helped propel the Hawks to a 27-13 lead at halftime; however, Maddux Lott, the team’s leading scorer and senior leader, was in foul trouble.
“I questioned one of the fouls called on me, and having to sit wasn’t the most fun,” Lott said. “We kept the pedal to the floor though and didn’t let the officiating affect us.”
The student section brought the energy in the third quarter, even though calls weren’t going the Hawks’ way. During the third quarter, the Hawks were outscored, 12-11.
By the time the fourth quarter rolled around, the student section became even louder. Halfway through the quarter, fouls on the Hawks allowed Williamsburg to cut the lead to nine.
Lott fouled out; however, Tyrus Werner, another senior leader, helped the Hawks start to pull away to a 61-42 victory
“Obviously, Maddux (Lott) fouling out wasn’t what we wanted to happen in a game like this,” Werner said. “I knew I had to help keep everyone’s head in the game.”
Late in the final quarter, a Williamsburg player had the ball slip out of his hands and roll out of bounds.
“The student section erupting with energy allowed the momentum to swing back in our direction,” Werner said.
Back-to-back fast break layups from junior John Beswick added the dagger for the Hawks. Beswick and Bryce Smith led the way for the Hawks finishing with 13 points and plenty of rebounds each.
Head coach Drake Schuring brought the subs in for the final minute and a half of the fourth quarter. Sophomore Seth Jackson added a layup and Boston McAulay (11) drilled a three to put the game out of reach for good.
“The feeling after I hit the three is indescribable,” McAulay said. “The bench, crowd, and student section erupted.”
Schuring was extremely proud of the way his team performed in this game and said that they played one of their best games of the season.
“Everything we were getting, whether it was made shots, rebounds, or fast break opportunities, came from our effort on the defensive end,” Schuring said. “They had a hard time keeping up with our tempo. I’m just super proud of this group.”
The crowd played a major role in this big game. Senior student section member Luke Reth was one of the many crowd members cheering all night.
“You see everything you need to know, like rankings, on social media,” Reth said. “We saw they were ranked sixth in 3A, so we knew that we had to bring loads of energy for our guys to feed off of.”
Schuring also said that Seedorff Gymnasium is a fun place to play because the people in the community take their time to support the team.
“We’ve got Solon here on Friday,” Schuring said. “It’s a boy/girl doubleheader so this place is going to be rocking. Hopefully, we can show them the same intensity that we had tonight.”
