On Jan. 8, DHS boys varsity basketball team welcomed Mount Pleasant Oilers to DHS for a hard fought battle. In the first quarter the Chargers got off to a fast start taking an 11-8 lead pushing the ball down the court. Dow’s first quarter offensive surge was led by three seniors. Senior Drew Cassiday led the Chargers in the first quarter scoring six points and 17 points for the game along with seven rebounds. Senior Zack Hook added three, and senior Robert Rogowski chipped in with a basket as well.
The Chargers took their offensive burst into the second quarter by making a 6-0 run. During the second quarter DHS junior Adam Fitzgibbon provided a spark from the DHS bench scoring nine points, collecting three rebound, and dishing out two assists in the game. However, Mount Pleasant would not go away. The Oilers went on their own run and took a 24 -21 lead at halftime.
The game stayed tight in the third quarter with six different lead changes. At the end of the third quarter the game was tied at 42 -42.
In the beginning minutes of the fourth quarter DHS junior Malik Garner took over the game by scoring eight straight points for DHS giving him 18 points for the night. Mount Pleasant came storming back going on an 11 -2 run to take a 55-54 lead with only 3:53 left to go. Dow would come right back with DHS senior point guard Gavin Groszek hitting a key three pointer to take the lead back from the Oilers to make it 59 -57. Mount Pleasant came and took the lead right back from Dow playing lockdown defense for a three minute span and scoring four points having a two point advantage with only 57 seconds remaining. With 24.2 seconds left, Cassiday got the ball in the paint, got fouled, and then put in the hoop tying the game at 61 with a chance to take the lead with and one. Mount Pleasant than went back down the court and Oiler guard Colin MacGregor made the most important drive of the game scoring with just 3.5 seconds remaining giving Mount Pleasant a 62-61lead.
The Chargers in a last effort attempt pushed the ball down the court where Garner shot a 30 -35 foot shot that nearly went in. The final score was 62-61 Mount Pleasant. MacGregor finished the game with 10 points and his teammate Kyle Shomin finished the game with 25 points, 10 rebounds, and five assists. The loss dropped DHS record to 4-4 on the year and 3-3 in the Saginaw Valley League. The Oilers record improved to 5-3 on the year and 4-3 in the Saginaw Valley League.
