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Centaurs finish
off week with
energetic
performance
There was plenty of energy at the Woodstock Academy Alumni Fieldhouse Dec. 13.
And Centaurs Gold prep basketball coach Jacque Rivera was loving it.
The Centaurs downed Notre Dame-West Haven, 84-63, to raise their record to 10-1.
There was a little incentive to play well.
On the other bench was Nick DeFeo.
DeFeo had been the coach of the Centaurs Blue program until he landed his own first-year program at Notre Dame-West Haven.
Dyondre Dominguez came out firing early. The 6-foot, 8-inch forward from Providence hit a pair of 3-pointers and finished with 14 points in the first half to help the Centaurs build a 46-29 halftime advantage.
Quran McPherson helped out with six points in the first half. McPherson added six more points in the second half and finished with a double-double as he added 10 rebounds.
“Quran is a really good player, but he’s still learning this prep school thing. The play-ons from the officials, how hard you have to play every possession. He came from a good place and he wants to get other guys involved. He will be back next year, he’s a 2021, so he’s really starting to figure it out. He’s defending, shooting gaps and he infects energy into us. Since he’s got healthy, he’s yelling, he’s screaming, he’s talking on defense, high-fiving guys and that’s what this is all about,” Rivera said.
The Centaurs had a little trouble maintaining that energy in the second half and they let the Green Knights (8-3) creep back into the game.
A 10-2 run late in the second half by Notre Dame-West Haven brought the deficit down to 12, 70-58, but Chad Venning (12 points) followed a Dominguez misfire and Ronnie DeGray (13 points hit two consecutive baskets to end the threat.
They have some momentum going in as the win over Notre Dame-West Haven was not the only success of the week.
Dominguez was on fire early for the Woodstock Academy Gold prep team Dec. 11.
Dominguez hit five 3-pointers in the first half alone, finished with six on the night, and scored 24 points to lead the Centaurs past AIM High Academy, 98-60.
It was a bit of a slow start for the Centaurs who only put up 21 points in the first 10 minutes.
It was a Dominguez 3-pointer that sparked a 25-3 run for the Centaurs late in the first half that put them up by 20, 54-34, at the half.
Joe Moon, McPherson and Venning all contributed nine points each.
Rivera was also happy with the play of David Jones who finished with eight points on 3-for-4 shooting with seven rebounds.
Dominguez said the team is in a good place right now.
The Centaurs were also stoked by the return to the floor of Jordan Mitchell.
The 6-8 forward from Columbus, Ohio, had been on the sidelines for the last two seasons with knee problems. When he hit his first career basket for the Centaurs with 3:05 left in the game Dec. 11, the bench erupted.
“We’re all about being selfless. How happy were those guys? Quran McPherson was screaming in my face on the bench,” Rivera said with a laugh.
Josh Davis almost jumped through the Fieldhouse roof in joy.
Marc Allard
Director of Sports Information
The Woodstock Academy
..