Dwyer High boys basketball spoils Forest Hill's championship quest with regional quarterfinal win

WEST PALM BEACH — Back in December, when the Dwyer High boys basketball team rolled into the Forest Hill gymnasium, they were down four starters, all with the football team for a tri-county playoff game.

Forest Hill made quick work of the Panthers that night, winning by over 20 points. Thursday, Dwyer got its revenge, edging the Falcons 68-63 in a Region 3-7A quarterfinal and knocking out last year's state semifinalists. 

With the win, Dwyer advances to Tuesday's regional semifinal and will host Wellington. 

“Everybody knew we were missing four starters,” Dwyer coach Fred Ross said. “We had five kids that were playing football [against Plantation that same night], and they were all our starters, so we knew that it would be a different game this time.”

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But the Panthers got production from everywhere against the Falcons, 6-0 at home going into Thursday, with the bench scoring over a third of the Panthers' points (26). Going into the half, Dwyer’s bench (18) had more points than the starters (17). 

“Those guys really prepared,” Ross said. “Our non-starters won this game for us by preparing the starters for this kind of intensity. We did some different things in practice … but our non-starters were really the reason we won.”

Leading the bench in scoring was Juwan Dawes, who finished with 13 points. Dawes was the team’s third-highest scorer, with starters Kyle McNeal and Xavier Scott Jr. finishing with 17 and 14, respectively.

Poor shooting ultimately cost the Falcons, who after starting 8-0 lost three of their last five games. They struggled from the 3-point line, going 1-for-14, as Dwyer (11-3) went on a 14-0 run in the first quarter to take an early lead. Forest Hill (10-3) fought back, going on a 21-14 run in the third quarter to eventually tie it at 47.

Donovan Draper (17 points) and Jalen Jeter (16 points) spurred Forest Hill's comeback attempt, but late free throws from Dawes sealed the win for the Panthers. 

Next up for Dwyer is a 12-2 Wellington team that beat Vero Beach 57-49 on Thursday. The two teams met Feb. 4 with the Panthers defeating the Wolverines 50-45.

Thursday's scores

Regional quarterfinals

Class 7A

Dwyer 68, Forest Hill 63

Wellington 57, Vero Beach 49

Coral Springs 54, Lake Worth 53

Coconut Creek-Monarch 70, Santaluces 63 (OT)

Class 6A

Fort Lauderdale-Dillard 66, Olympic Heights 58

Class 5A

Lauderdale Lakes-Boyd Anderson 59, Suncoast 51

Class 4A

Lake Alfred-Discovery 57, Glades Central 31

Class 3A

St. Andrew's 63, Fort Lauderdale-Westminster Academy 56

Fort Lauderdale-Calvary Christian 78, Jupiter Christian 63

Class 2A

Atlantic Christian 52, Pompano Beach-Highlands Christian 49

Grandview Prep 71, Berean Christian 48