NEWARK — Salesianum put together a pretty good game against Dover in the DIAA boys basketball championship on March 9 at the Bob Carpenter Center, but in the end, the Senators had just a “Little” too much.
That would be Dorrell Little. The senior poured in 31 points, 20 of those coming in the second half as Dover, the second seed, rallied for a 56-53 win over the No. 4 Sals in front of a wild sellout crowd. It was the first title in the sport for the Senators in the 58 years of the tournament.
The Sals raced out to an 8-0 lead in front of several hundred black-clad Sallies students and held a seven-point lead after one. A 7-0 run in the second, capped by a three-pointer by Luke Brown, pushed the lead to the biggest of the night at 20-9. But Dover cut that to four at the half.
A corner three by Kareem Thomas made it 36-39 in the middle of the third, but the Senators rallied. Denim Perkins curled around a defender to lay in a bucket, and Little hit for three. After a Thomas free throw and a bit of a cold spell for both teams, Little got ahead of the Sals’ defense for a layup to get the Senators to within a point. A steal by Perkins turned into a coast-to-coast layup for Perkins to put Dover in front. The teams traded hoops in the final 40 seconds, and Dover led by a point going into the fourth.
The quarter started on a high note for the Sals as Thomas connected on a conventional three-point play. After some back and forth, R.J. Johnson scored on a turnaround shot to put Salesianum on top, 48-44.
The Senators, however, scored the next six points. Perkins went first before Little knocked down an off-balance shot off the glass after grabbing an offensive rebound. Little got the next points as well after a goaltending violation on the Sals.
Justin Hinds tied the game with a put back before the Senators went on a run to close in on the title. Little scored with 1:10 to go to put Dover in front for good. The Sals could not connect on a few possessions, and Dover went one for two in two trips to the free throw line.
Salesianum could not get a shot to fall, and Perkins hit a pair of free throws with just a few seconds to go as the Senators’ supporters filled the Bob with cheers. Thomas hit a three as the buzzer sounded, but by that time, Dover’s players were already celebrating their first championship.
Perkins joined Little in double figures with 16 points. Dover outrebounded the Sals, 37-36, with 23 offensive rebounds. The Senators, who made just 8 of 36 field goal attempts in the first half, went 13 of 23 in the second. Dover finished the season with a record of 22-2, winning their final 14 games. Each of their two losses was by a single point.
For the Sals, Thomas (18) and Isaiah Hynson (15) were in double figures. The team reached the final for the third consecutive season. They closed out the year at 15-9.
Photos by Mike Lang.
