VASJ vs. Hawken boys basketball: Vikings' huge fourth quarter pushes them ahead, 77-74
Jan. 14—Down 11 as the game entered the fourth quarter and with several starters in foul trouble, VASJ needed someone to step up if it wanted to come back against Hawken on Jan. 14 at the Everything Leads Back Invitational.
The Vikings turned to sophomore Ari Jones, and he provided the spark. He connected on six 3-pointers, including the game-tying shot with just under a minute to go. With 4 seconds left, Jones wasn't open, but fellow sophomore Sean Shenker worked his way open in the corner to drain the game-winner.
Hawken had one final chance, but its sixth turnover of the game resulted in a 77-74 VASJ victory.
VASJ (4-9) was in the game throughout but was hampered by early foul trouble. Before the end of the first quarter, the Vikings were over the limit.
This caused the Vikings to play a more laxed defensive scheme, and the Hawks took advantage. Coach Ashen Ward turned to his bench to stay in the game. While Jones caught fire in the fourth, it was the rest of the Vikings' reserves who kept the game close.
VASJ coach Ashen Ward talks about the hot hand of Ari Jones and the comeback from @VASJVikingsAD against Hawken #NHBasketball pic.twitter.com/R8BlT07ZSA
— Ben Hercik (@BHercikNH) January 15, 2023
"This isn't the first time he's done it for us this season. We had another game where we needed him to take charge," Ward said. "He takes the opportunities and runs with them. We tell all our guys that everyone needs to be ready. We have a 13-man roster, any day any man can play and foul trouble is one of those factors. It was nice to see the guys that were ready for it."
Jones hit his first 3 late in the third. As the scoreboard turned to the fourth quarter, Jones hit 3 after 3 that drew the Vikings within reach. When all was said and done, he finished with 20 points in the final frame and 21 in the contest.
Perfect from deep, Jones was happy to be able to keep the game within range but knows they need to step it up overall in every facet.
The duo of Ari Jones and Sean Shenker tied and won the game for @VASJVikingsAD. They talk about the first half struggles and their shooting from deep to elevate the Vikings to a win #NHBasketball pic.twitter.com/FyL9kUriKj
— Ben Hercik (@BHercikNH) January 15, 2023
"We don't want to be known as a team that relies on the 3 but we want to be known for our defense and our ability to drive," Jones said. "We are a team that has to be able to work from everywhere. My guys were down and we needed someone to pick us up, it just happened to be me today."
After the ball was bounced around tied at 74-74, Hawken called a timeout. Out of the timeout, Ward saw that Hawken had Jones guarded tightly but that Shenker was open at the top of the key.
He then called his own timeout and drew up a new play. After the inbound, Shenker found his way to the corner and drained the open look.
Like Jones, all of Shenker's points came in the second half as he finished with 12, all from deep. With the open look, he knew that the shot was going in well before it left his hands.
"It's not the first time I've hit a game-winner so I really didn't feel a lot of pressure," Shenker said. "I feel like I strive with pressure. I knew that with all the attention on us that I was going to make the shot and have us walk away as winners."
Hawken (7-6) built their lead off of their trio of guards Da'Ron Hill, Taj Caver and Gregory Price. All three were in double figures before halftime and finished with 24, 23 and 16 points respectively. David Dettelbach also had nine rebounds as well.
The Hawks look to get back on track when they host West Geauga on Jan. 17. VASJ looks to make it a three-game winning streak when they head to the MLK Dream Invitational on Jan. 16.
PHOTOS: VASJ vs. Hawken boys basketball, Jan. 14, 2023
