NEW PHILADELPHIA — On a night honoring one player’s scoring achievement, another player had the game of a lifetime.
Shannon Givens amassed 60 points, scoring over half of his team’s total, in the Schuylkill Firedogs’ 138-117 loss Saturday to the York Mighty Ants. Givens added 13 rebounds to complete his double-double in the opening round of the Eastern Basketball Alliance’s playoffs at the Citadel Athletic Complex.
Prior to the start of the game, the Firedogs’ Cory Houser was announced as the winner of the EBA’s scoring title for the regular season. Houser averaged 30.3 ppg during the Firedogs’ seven-game season, but scored just 19 points in the playoff loss.
“That’s great for Shannon, so kudos to him,” Firedogs coach Rich Mills said. “That’s why we brought him on the team. He did that in high school, and he did that in college. He’s the kid that can go on and play another level of basketball.
“Cory Houser’s one of the best players in the league,” he added. “Today he had a rough game offensively, and we go like he goes.”
The game began as a back-and-forth affair, with both teams changing leads often throughout the first two quarters.
Givens paced the Firedogs’ offense with 23 points in the first half, but York led 59-55 at halftime.
In the third quarter, the Mighty Ants turned up the heat, outscoring Schuylkill 35-24 in the period.
Seth Leonard tallied 12 points in the frame, and recorded a team-high 34 total points for York.
Brandon Deshields added 16 of his 24 points in the fourth quarter to help give the Mighty Ants the victory. The win advances York to the EBA championship game April 19 against the Harrisburg Horizon.
“Everything came so easy for them, and everything came so hard for everyone but Shannon,” Mills said. “York just shot the heck out of the ball from the middle of the third quarter all the way to the fourth quarter, and that brings your spirits down a little bit.”
This was the third meeting between the teams this season. The Firedogs took the first game 145-141 in overtime, and the second 124-114.
“I’ve been playing basketball since I was 4 years old, and I know it’s hard to beat the same team three times in one season,” Givens said. “In the third quarter, they were hitting everything, and it just didn’t go our way tonight.”
Givens scored 29 of his 60 points the fourth quarter for the Firedogs, shooting 31-of-37 from the foul line throughout the game.
Givens admitted afterward that he was unaware how well he was doing while on the court.
“I play the best I can when I’m out there, but I’m shocked a little bit to hear I had 60 points,” Givens said. “I was able to step around a lot of guys and make jump shots, and I made a lot of foul shots, too.”
The Firedogs may have been eliminated from the EBA playoffs, but Givens was still thrilled with his performance and his overall experience with the Firedogs.
“I came in about halfway through the season, and these guys welcomed me,” Givens said. “I love these guys and this environment. The town supported us, and it was just a great place to play.”
Game Summary
EBA semifinal
At New Philadelphia
YORK (138) — Casimer 0 4-5 4, Leonard 13 5-6 34, Parker 7 0-0 17, Festus 7 1-1 15, Tipton 6 0-0 16, Rivers 5 2-2 12, Walker 8 0-2 16, Deshields 10 1-2 24. Totals 56 13-18 138.
SCHUYLKILL (117) — Houser 7 5-5 19, Carter 6 2-2 14, Givens 19 17-21 60, Conway 1 2-4 4, Bell 3 0-0 6, Dombrosky 1 0-0 3, Eichhorst 3 5-6 11. Totals 40 31-38 117.
York (3-7) 28 31 35 44 — 138 Sch. (4-4) 22 33 24 38 — 117
3-point FGs: Leonard 3, Parker 3, Tipton 4, Deshields 3, Givens 5, Dombrosky