DALTON, Mass. — Joe Lavinio led the way for the Wahconah boys basketball team with 11 points, giving them the edge over Drury, 39-34, Monday night.

 

Lavinio had 8 of his 11 points in the second half, including a big 3-pointer with less than a minute to go to give his team a five-point lead. 

 

Matt Schneider and Cole Morrison each helped out with 8 points of their own to round off a balance scoring game for  Wahconah.

 

In a low-scoring game, both teams looked toward their defense to help give them a spark.

 

“In a game where shots aren’t falling, we really needed to step it up on defense and i think we did.” Wahconah coach Dustin Belcher said. 

 

For Drury (7-5), Hayden Bird knocked down 18 points, with Connor Meehan and Cristian Montoya each adding five.

 

This was Drury’s fifth loss in a row after starting the season 7-0. 

 

It was a close battle throughout the whole game, starting with Drury jumping out to a five-point lead at the half, thanks to a half-court buzzer beater by Meehan. The teame exchanged baskets during most of the third quarter until a late run that saw Wahconah (6-6),  outscore the Blue Devils, 14-10, putting them within one point going into the fourth. Wahconah continued to take momentum especially after a 3-point shot by Lavinio to give the hosts a five-point lead with less than 30 seconds left.

 

“That's the thing about Joey, even when he is missing shots he never losses confidence,” Dustin Belcher said. 

 

Wahconah went on to hit key free throws to get the win. 

 

Wahconah will travel to Hoosac Valley Thursday night, while the Blue Devils will go back home to host Taconic Thursday night. 

 

More photos of this game here.