Bishop Hartley 55, DeSales 48 - Prospect Scouting Report

Hartley withstands DeSales's fourth-quarter surge, picks up a crucial win to stay on top of the Central Catholic standings.

Bishop Hartley (14-1, 3-0 CCL) earns their seventh consecutive win on Friday night at home against a pesky DeSales (8-7, 1-2 CCL) team, 55-48.

After suffering a brutal two-point home loss to conference foe Bishop Watterson last Friday, there was nothing head coach Pat Murphy, and the Stallions wanted more than to head into Dick Geyer Gymnasium and hand their bitter rival Bishop Hartley their first conference loss on the season. With seldom open seats anywhere in sight and the Hartley student section rocking, the energy in the gym was exactly what one would expect for this covenant Catholic League rivalry matchup.

Unfortunately for the Stallions, the Hawks, led by one of the best backcourt duos in the area, the Calloway brothers, came out firing in the first quarter. Sophomore Jakhi Calloway set the tone for Hartley with a big-time three on the Hawk's second possession, followed by a beautiful dime on a base-line drive to junior sharp-shooter Carson Svetek, who was on fire from beyond the arc all night. However, the older Calloway brother, Jaden, stole the show at the end of the quarter, hitting two gorgeous step-back three-pointers that may have gone from NBA range. Hartley’s high-low offensive success and a stifling defensive performance earned them an 18-6 at the end of the first and a heap of momentum entering the second.

The second quarter was the same script as the first. The Hawks continued to exploit their size advantage against DeSales, with Pharez Nichols, who dominated the boards all night, finding offensive success in the low post. Hartley’s first-half game plan was centered around the two-man game of Jaden Calloway receiving a high ball screen from Nichols and forcing the Stallions to pick their poison. With DeSales converting only two field goals in the second quarter and four throughout the entire half, the Stallions found themselves down 30-13 heading into a locker room.