The Wave's Dylan Ridenour, 12, jumps high for a basket in the game against the Dust Devils.
The Greenwave varsity basketball team rode the energy of their Lady Wave counterpart and beat Dayton at home, 60-35.
After sending the Dust Devils back on the road at 2-6 overall and 0-1 in D1-A, the Wave is breaking even again at 3-3 overall and 1-1 in D1-A.
Fallon’s Clay Davidson won the tip off and scored the first point of the game on a free throw, to put Fallon on the board and in control for most of the game.
Dayton showed it could at least hold Fallon close with its rebounding from players like Josh Riders, but Fallon’s Braxton Hunter was quick on the steal against Riders that let Davidson and Connor Richardson and the Wave blister the net with shots up the middle and score simultaneously.
Riders scored a basket to give Dayton a 6-6 tie.
Davidson deflected what would have been an impressive layup by Dayton’s Chase Peterson.
Richardson was aggressive under net, but this threw off his aim for the first quarter under the net and gave Dayton time to regroup.
Still, Dylan Ridenour put the Wave up 11-8 with a bucket, and Richardson followed with a lay-up.
The first big play of the game came from Davidson, who dunked over the Dust Devils’ Jonathan Ply with 1:53 left after several minutes of Dayton playing catch up.
Ridenour would try for a trick shot layup, but only got another basket from a free throw after a personal foul. The quarter ended at 18-9.
Riders was at first eager to make the big plays, with several 3-point attempts toward the end of the first quarter, while Fallon’s Dillan Rassmussen and Dalton Kaady started the second and kept doing what they were doing, and pushed the Wave not to rush under the net and kept the passing over the Devils’ heads.
The Wave tried for a few 3-pointers of its own, but the first of the game went to Dayton’s Weston Hill.
Engaged after witnessing the dunk earlier, Ply deflected several strong shots by Davidson, one of the few of his team that has the height and speed to compete with Davidson.
Dayton’s Trevor Burrows was there to clean up when Fallon overshot throughout the second, but Fallon’s Marshall Coverston learned to anticipate him and worked with Ridenour to get the ball down the court.
Dayton surged ahead to eclipse Fallon for the first and last time of the game after a 3-pointer by Riders gave Dayton a brief 19-18 lead.
Davidson quickly gave Fallon the lead back at 20-19 with an assist from Richardson.
The second quarter ended after a few more buckets from Ridenour.
The third quarter began slowly for both teams behalves until three minutes in when Dayton’s Blake Fetcher scored a basket and broke the Devils through the 20 point wall, trailing Fallon at 27-21.
Riders and Richardson were toe to toe throughout the third, both fast players who can manage dribbling low to the ground without slowing down or disrupting footwork.
The Wave’s Hunter brought the score to 30-21 after nailing a basket.
Dayton turned into more of a pivot passing team in the third quarter, which helped the Dust Devils surge ahead with key baskets by Riders and Burrows.
The third quarter ended with the Wave up 40-32, the last time in which Dayton would be able to close a 10-point gap.
As the fourth quarter began, the Dust Devils appeared to play sluggish, showing some futility and letting the Wave systematically widen the gap with baskets from Davidson, Ridenour and TJ Fagg.
Fallon’s fourth-quarter lead slipped to 12 points before the Wave pulled away.
After a basket by Richardson the Wave was on top at 56-35.
Fagg made an impressive 3-pointer with little time to set up his shot from the far left post with 1:04 left in the game. That incited some vigor from Riders and Ply to attempt a few of their own, but in vain as the buzzer sounded.