Hopewell News

After round one of the Hopewell-Prince George ended in a Royals victory on the Blue Devils home floor, one could only assume round two would be a revenge game for Reggie Simon’s squad. Consider the mission for revenge complete.
Hopewell (6-6, 11-9) overcame an eight-point deficit in the third quarter to beat Prince George (3-8, 9-10) on its home floor, 78-70 in overtime on Tuesday night. Pedro Berrios scored 33 points in the effort, 21 of which came in the second half and overtime.
“I’ve been in the gym real hard lately because people have been saying I’ve been falling off, ...” Berrios said. “I just wanted to come out and prove them wrong, and it showed today.”
Berrios proved that he was up to his old trick when his team needed him most. The junior forward scored eight points in the fourth quarter then 8 of 12 Blue Devils points in the overtime session to give Hopewell consecutive Central District victories.
However, while it was Berrios that provided the scoring hammer, it was an unlikely source that pushed the game into overtime. Trailing 66-64 with under 30 seconds to play, David Rose through an inbounds pass under the Royals basket. Berrios found himself double covered, but another player was able to get free. That player was Justin Webb. Used primarily for his defense and energy off the bench, Webb received the pass and was fouled on the way up to the basket. The senior calmly stepped to the line and knocked down two free throws to tie the ball game.
Prince George had an opportunity to re-take the lead, but Hopewell’s full-court trap defense, which bothered the Royals throughout the fourth quarter, forced Markis Grandison into a travel and gave the ball back to the visitors. Rose was able to get a shot off as time expired from the left elbow, but it hit off the back iron.
In the overtime period, the Blue Devils were simply the better team. After Quinton McDougal knocked down a pair of free throws 23 seconds in, the Blue Devils closed on a 12-2 run. The presure defense played a major role in upsetting the Prince George offense and the Royals shooters were unable to comfortably set up from long range.
In the early going it appeared as if Hopewell might run away with the game. After an even first quarter, the Blue Devils won the second quarter by nine, and if not for a buzzer beating 3-pointer by McDougal, would have held a double-digit lead at the break. However, behind dominating third-quarter performances by Treon Claiborne and Albert Williams, the Royals stormed back to take the lead at the end of the third. The duo combined for 14 of Prince George’s 28 points in the quarter. Claiborne did that majority if that scoring, but Williams proved valuable on the defensive boards. Claiborne finished with 15 points while Williams had a career game with 18 points and 15 rebounds.
David Rose found double figures once again for Hopewell, netting 15 points. Jalen Reeves and McKindley King both scored 10 for the Blue Devils. Berrios added seven rebounds to his scoring total. For Prince George, Grandison added 17 points while McDougal scored 13.

Box Score

Hopewell...... 12 22 11 21 12 78
Prince George 12 13 28 13 4 70
Hopewell: Reeves 10, Webb 4, Berrios 33, Dam. Rose 6, M. King 10, Dav. Rose 15, Taylor 0, A. King 0
Prince George: Evans 0, McDougal 13, Taylor 2, Grandison 17, Sulc 0, Shelton 3, Claiborne 15, Morgan 2, Williams 18