Blue Devils fend off Falcons

MOUNT BLANCHARD – Carey's offense was clicking early Tuesday at Riverdale, allowing the Blue Devils to build a substantial lead. Carey led the Falcons 22-12 at the end of the first quarter, and was up by as many as 16 points early in the second period. None of that made Blue Devils' coach Jamie Young relax. "That was something I expressed to our kids: (Riverdale) is gonna play hard regardless of the score," Young said. "Coach (Craig) Taylor's got 'em… that''s the way they play over here." The words were prophetic. Behind a brilliant night from senior Thomas Miller, the Falcons staged a number of rallies, getting within three points of Carey several times. But behind some tough defense and a patient offense, the Blue Devils held on. They got 15 points and seven rebounds from Anthony Bell and downed the Falcons, 61-57.Carey, playing its third game since Thursday, improved to 4-3. The Blue Devils beat Buckeye Central Monday night."Anytime you can win on a Tuesday night after playing on a Monday night, no matter who it is, it's good to get that W," Young said.Jordan Vallejo had 13 points and six boards for the Blue Devils, with Brayden Young adding 12 points.For Riverdale (3-8), Miller scored 24 points to go with three assists. "He can have special nights like this," Taylor said. There were a few times in the second half where it appeared Miller's efforts might be enough to put Riverdale over the top. Down three points at the beginning of the fourth quarter, the Falcons were carrying the momentum. But Carey stopped it. The Blue Devils held the Falcons scoreless for the first four minutes of the fourth quarter, and their lead went back up to 55-44 after an Ashton Hill jumper with 3:52 remaining. "We can fly around and play defense," Young said. "When we play half court defense, we should be able to defend a lot of teams." Riverdale made one last push. It went on a 10-2 run, getting within 57-54 after Jayden Taylor made to free throws with 1:47 left. The Blue Devils needed a big play. They got it from Hill, who converted a driving layup with 1:06 left. Carey went back up by five. "They were pressing us, and we made a good find to the high post, and (Hill) was able to get there and go to the basket," Young said. It proved the decisive play of the game. But to coach Taylor, Riverdale's troubles started much earlier. "Proud of these guys' fight tonight," he said. "I just told my assistant coaches, 'The first quarter is probably where we lost.' "They just have a lot of athletes, a lot of beef. But we fought. We showed some heart tonight." But Carey got the win.