Justin Ruple of Delta drives along the baseline during Friday’s NWOAL matchup at Swanton. The Panthers moved to 3-1 in the league with a 35-34 win over the Bulldogs.
Max Householder | AIM Media Midwest
Swanton’s Charlie Wood scores underneath the basket Friday night versus Delta.
Max Householder | AIM Media Midwest
Delta’s James Ruple makes a pass around a pair of Swanton defenders. Ruple hit the game-winning shot at the buzzer, giving his team the one-point victory.
Max Householder | AIM Media Midwest
Delta boys basketball continued to make its 2022-23 season more memorable, battling back down five with around 4:30 to play, culminating with James Ruple’s shot at the buzzer to give them a 35-34 victory at Swanton Friday night in Northwest Ohio Athletic League action.
“It felt amazing. It was great,” Ruple said of hitting the game-winner. “I mean our team played hard all game, going from down five most of the game…we came back. That was like the first lead we had in the second half.
“It was just a great win for our team.”
A Cole Mitchey 3-pointer for Swanton put the Bulldogs up 34-29 with 4:35 remaining. However, those would be the last points scored in the contest by the home team.
A pair of missed front-ends of the bonus also hindered Swanton down the stretch.
Bryar Knapp’s two free throws then a basket inside by Ruple brought the Panthers within one, 34-33, with 1:41 to go. The second straight missed front-end of a 1-and-1 allowed the Panthers the final shot with under 25 seconds left.
They came up short on a triple try, but Bryce Gillen was able to save the ball from going out of bounds and it made its way to Ruple on the left wing, and the senior got the mid-range jumper to drop for the win.
“We were down all game. We knew it was gonna come down to the very last play. And that’s kind of what we’ve preached the whole year — ever since these kids have been in the program — you play until the buzzer goes off,” said Delta coach Matt Brighton. “Bryce Gillen didn’t have the best shooting game tonight, but he made that play that really put us over. And James made the big shot, but we can’t forget about Bryce Gillen going and getting that loose ball.”
According to Ruple, the Panthers’ perseverance and will to win were key in getting the comeback victory.
“They (Swanton) have a lot of shooters and a lot of playmakers. But, we just went out there and we played as hard as we could. When it comes down to it, the hardest working team’s gonna win most of the time,” he said.
Momentum swung back and forth throughout the game in this low-scoring affair.
Delta led 10-7 after the first quarter as James Ruple notched seven of the 10 points. But, Swanton began to hit the three-ball over the top of the Panthers’ 2-3 zone in the second quarter, claiming the lead.
Mitchey hit the first one 1:08 into the stanza, but the Panthers fired back with a Nolan Risner floater then a 3-pointer by Justin Ruple for a 15-11 lead with 4:38 before half.
The Dogs got within one and then grabbed the lead, 17-15, on threes by Kayden Davis and Hayden Callicotte. Luc Borojevich also hit from long range as Swanton carried a 20-15 advantage into the break.
Swanton extended the margin by one (28-22) after three quarters, outscoring Delta 8-7 in the frame.
However, Delta doubled up the Dogs plus one in the fourth. Justin Ruple converted in the paint then added a pair at the foul line, followed by Risner going 1 for 2 at the charity stripe, getting the Panthers within one at 28-27 with just under six minutes to play.
This was a sign of things to come as they went on to erase Swanton’s five-point lead over the final four and a half minutes.
“This Delta team, they don’t give up and we’re not gonna lay down for anybody. And we’re gonna go out there and we’re gonna play as hard as we can all the time,” said James Ruple on what the win says about their team.
“We keep trying to build off of every win no matter who we’re playing,” concluded Brighton. “It just happened to be a league opponent tonight. But we look to get better every game and we look to build off each one. This one really allows us to take that next step.”
The Panthers are now 14-2 overall and 3-1 in the NWOAL. They narrowly beat North Central, 34-29, on Saturday.
The defending NWOAL champs drop to 12-4 with just a 1-3 mark in the league.
This week, Delta visits Hilltop (4-12) Tuesday night and then hosts Wauseon (11-7, 3-1 NWOAL) on Friday. Swanton welcomes Clay (2-15) Tuesday before traveling to Archbold (9-8, 3-1) Friday night.
Reach Max Householder at 419-335-2010.
