NEW PHILADELPHIA — The night did not go as advertised, but the Schuylkill Fire Dogs still put on a show packed with family entertainment.
The Fire Dogs’ season-opening Eastern Basketball Alliance matchup against the Maryland Bayraiders was postponed to an undetermined date due to a car accident on Interstate 95 near Washington, D.C., that sent two Maryland players to the hospital and injured two others.
The severity of their injuries was not disclosed, but the rest of the Bayraiders joined their teammates at the hospital while about 350 fans waited in the Citadel Athletic Center to watch some basketball.
What the fans got was a free ticket to any future Fire Dogs home game this season and a chance to watch the
home team compete in a scrimmage and a slam dunk contest.
“We had to play the hand we were dealt,” Fire Dogs coach John Plachko said. “But I think we had a fun family night with a great crowd who got to see some quality basketball.”
The 12-man Fire Dogs team was divided into two six-man squads for the scrimmage, which featured two 15-minute halves with a running clock.
One side wore its red jerseys while the other remained in the Fire Dogs’ gray practice shirts.
“We just have to roll with the punches when something like this happens,” Princeton University graduate Will Barrett said. “And even though we were playing our own teammates, we made sure all of us would be playing hard.”
Darnell Braswell, a graduate of DeSales University, led the way for the red shirts in the first half with 15 points, including three consecutive 3-pointers, and finished with 20 points overall.
Braswell was matched on the opposing team by Douglas Davis, another Princeton graduate, with 15 first-half points, but the gray shirts trailed 34-31 at halftime.
Cory Houser, a graduate of Penn State Schuylkill and a Ringtown native, paced the gray shirts’ offense in the second half with 13 points. Houser tallied 20 total points in the scrimmage.
Barrett scored 11 points in the second half en route to a 17-point night for the red shirts.
The most memorable moment of the night came on the final play, with the score knotted at 60 and less than 10 seconds left to play.
Kieran Conway, a member of the red shirts, rebounded his own jumper from the key and hit a buzzer-beater that gave his team a 62-60 victory.
“It was an awesome feeling,” Conway said. “I missed the first shot, and luckily I came up with the rebound. Then I knew I wasn’t gonna miss again.”
The 35-year-old Orwigsburg native drew cheers from his friends and relatives after the game.
“Playing in front of kids I coach and my friends and family is livin’ the dream,” Conway said. “To get a game-winning shot is just icing on the cake.”
Fans were then treated to a slam dunk contest that was highlighted by a 360-dunk by Houser.
After the night’s festivities ended, Plachko summed up his team’s game plan for the upcoming season.
“I think we have what it takes to win it all this year,” Plachko said. “We’re there talent-wise, so I fully expect us to go after it.”