York Men’s 1sts comeback to beat University of Hull 1sts 59 – 50

In the last game of the season, with a potential second place up for grabs, York played some of their best basketball to date against their opponents in order to finish on a high note.

Right from the start York came out strong with Brendan Moran and Rodrigo Donadi attacking the basket from the post positions. Moran scored the first points of the game whilst Donadi drew a foul driving into the key, sank both free throws, stole the inbound pass, scored, was fouled and made the final free throw. These five ridiculously quick points by Donadi, and Moran’s five point contribution, quickly established the lead over Hull which remained intact to the end of the quarter York 12 – Hull 9.

The second quarter was a different story. Moran spent a lot of the quarter on the bench, allowing Hull’s centre enough room to begin attacking the low post, and Donadi failed to score a point even though he played with the same aggression as the first quarter. Dan Baark made a good impact on defence, stealing the ball three times during the quarter, whilst Marcus Johansson kept York in contention on offence, but it was not enough. Hull regained the lead halfway through the quarter and extended it throughout the remaining minutes. On offence York’s rhythm began to falter with passes going astray and shots being repeatedly blocked by Hull, whilst on defence, with Moran on the bench, York found it hard to contain Hull. At the end of the quarter the score stood at York 21 – Hull 26.

The third quarter saw the momentum switch back to York with Moran and Donadi finding their rhythm on offence once more. Moran scored four points and grabbed his third and fourth offensive rebound of the game. Donadi scored six points and took his fifth and sixth offensive rebound against Hull, showing that Hull’s attempts to box-out were not up to scratch. Johansson scored seven points, increasing his total point haul to fifteen, but his performance in the quarter was eclipsed by a surprise surge from a player normally known for his defensive capabilities. David Nalton, possibly playing the last BUCS game of his basketball career, started his attacks in the first quarter but had trouble taking it to the hoop. Not to be deterred, Nalton upped his game to deliver his best offensive performance at any home BUCS game this season. Opening up with a reverse layup, Nalton scored eight points including two from the line to drive York, along with Donadi and Johansson, back into the lead. By the end of the quarter York had created a significant lead over Hull 46-39.

The last quarter of the season saw a final charge by Hull. A couple of mistakes which allowed Hull to grab offensive rebounds cost York dearly and with five minutes left in the game Hull were within three points of York. Fortunately for York Donadi, Johansson, and Moran stayed consistent in the face of the closing gap. Donadi grabbed another two offensive rebounds, totalling eight for the game, and scored another four points, comfortably finishing the season on a double-double. Johansson brought his point total up to eighteen points and added a third offensive rebound to his stats for the game. Moran, playing his best home game of the season, grabbed his fifth offensive rebound of the game and finished the game with twelve points. Nalton, after his offensive burst, had a quieter fourth quarter but still played well until the end. Baark stole the ball three more times, disrupting Hull’s passing, and finished the game with seven steals. The team as a whole managed twenty-four steals and nineteen offensive rebounds, once again showing the team’s strong hustle both on offence and defence. The game finished with several clutch plays from York, nicely rounding up a good season for the home team, and enabled them to tie second place with Hull 59-50.

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