The Battle of the First State. The Route 1 Rivalry. On Monday, December 16, the two Division 1 schools from the State of Delaware squared off at the 76ers Fieldhouse in Wilmington, Delaware for bragging rights within the state. And HoopsHD was there!
Thanks must first be made to the University of Delaware for the media pass to the game and a great seat on press row right near center court. I was seated directly behind the Instant Replay screen..which gave me a great view of the screens, and not that bad of a view of the game at all!
This game marked the first game of the season for players from both team. For the Fightin’ Blue Hens, Dylan Painter, a transfer from Villanova, made his season debut now that the first semester has concluded. Painter certainly came ready to play, as he was a dominant force off the bench. Painter finished the game with a team-high 19 points. Given that Delaware had four players already averaging in double digits, his addition could make this team the favorites to win the Colonial this year. The Hornets of Delaware State welcomed Trey Gross to his first game of the year as well. Gross was a starting wide receiver on the football team this season, but has now turned his attention to the basketball court with the football season over. Gross scored 2 points and pulled down 2 rebounds in his short time on the court.
At the end of the day, it was Dylan Painter and the Blue Hens that picked up the 86-78 win, a game that they led pretty much wire-to-wire. Nate Darling, the team’s leading scorer entering the game, did finish with 18 points, although most of those points came late in the game as the Hornets had done a strong job containing him. In fact, more than midway through the first half, Darling had as many points (2) as turnovers. The depth of this Delaware team was shown, however, as Painter, Ryan Allen (14 points) and Collin Goss (9 points and 10 rebounds) more than made up for the early lack of offense from Darling.
Delaware State may have lost the game, but the Hornets were able to stay within striking distance the whole way thanks to John Crosby and Ameer Bennett. Crosby was the game’s top scorer, dropping 30 point before fouling out late. Bennett picked up a double-double with 13 points and 11 boards. The Hornets may be only 1-10 on the season now, but there is no reason that this team will not be competitive in the MEAC this season if players like Crosby and Bennett can continue to lead the way.
Delaware is now 15-5 all time in matchups against their in-state rivals. However, this rivalry is alive and well, and proved to be a great game between two teams that clearly wanted to win. The fan turnout was strong, and the decision to play this game at a neutral location did not take anything away form the game. In the end, the Blue Hens may have won, but it was the guy pictured below, who seemed to have the most fun!
