Whitney Young Tops Kenwood, 58-55, to Claim Proviso West Holiday Tournament Title
(BOX SCORE) – In a rematch of last year’s championship game, Whitney Young exacted revenge over Kenwood Academy, 58-55, to claim the 61st Annual Proviso West Holiday Tournament title.
The victory marks the sixth Proviso West Holiday Tournament title in Whitney Young history, having most recently won the championship in 2016.
Daniel Johnson led a balanced Whitney Young offense, scoring a team-high 16 points. Dalen Davis scored 11 and Antonio Munoz added 10 as six Dolphin players accounted for all 58 points. Kenwood was led by Darrin Ames (14 points) and Calvin Robins Jr. (14), who accounted for 38 of the 55 points.
Trailing 4-2 in the early going, Whitney Young scored nine unanswered points to force a timeout by the Broncos. A Dolphin bucket out of the timeout pushed the run to 11 in a row, as four different Whitney Young players scored during the push. After Whitney Young pushed the lead to nine in the opening quarter, back-to-back jumpers by Calvin Robins Jr. cut the Kenwood deficit to five after the opening quarter of play.
Whitney Young regained the momentum at the start of the second quarter, scoring the first five points of the frame off a jumper from Daniel Johnson and a corner 3-pointer by Damajay Richardson. The points were a sign of things to come, as Whitney Young outscored Kenwood by six in the second quarter, and led by as many as 18 points, to take a 32-21 lead into the halftime break.
The Dolphin defense caused fits for the Broncos the entire first half as Kenwood was held to just 33.3% shooting from the field and 0-for-7 shooting from beyond the arc. Whitney Young, who shot 53.8% from the floor in the opening 16 minutes of action, was led by 11 first-half points from Daniel Johnson as six of the seven Dolphin players who saw minutes in the first half scored at least two points.
Kenwood started to chip away at the Whitney Young lead, turning a 38-24 deficit at the 5:22 mark down to just two with 2:35 left in the third quarter following a Tyler Smith corner triple. The two teams would trade baskets down the stretch, with Whitney Young taking a 46-44 lead into the final quarter.
The Broncos thrived inside the arc in the third, going 7-for-9 (77.8%) on 2-point field goal attempts. A trio of Kenwood players, Tyler Smith, Darrin Ames and Calvin Robins Jr., all had six points each in third, as Kenwood limited Whitney Young to just 4-for-12 shooting in the frame.
After Whitney Young weathered the third-quarter run, scoring six of the first seven points of the fourth to push the lead back to seven, Kenwood countered with six unanswered to pull within one at 52-51 with 3:44 left to play. The one-point deficit was the closest Kenwood had been to Whitney Young since the Dolphins led 4-2 in the opening quarter.
The Broncos got within one two more times in the next two minutes, but each time Whitney Young was able to push the advantage back to three. Whitney Young burned timeout with 53.1 left in the game, holding onto a slim 58-55 lead. Kenwood got the defensive stop it was looking for, but Kenwood’s Darrin Ames’ 3-pointer with six seconds left was off the mark. A tip-in effort fell short, and Whitney Young hauled in the board to clinch the title.