CHAMBERSBURG — Simply too much J.J. Kelly.

Shippensburg put up a good fight Saturday night in the CASHS Field House in the 15th annual Dunks for Drew showcase, but Chambersburg’s Kelly was just too hard to account for.

Jai’tavius Kelly

Kelly terrorized Ship inside, scoring 13 close-in baskets (6 on putbacks) to account for 27 points in the Trojans’ 55-42 victory over the Greyhounds.

“Their size and athleticism made a huge difference,” Greyhound coach Rick Lewis said. “Our kids did the best they could and showed a lot of energy, but if you make one little mistake they can really hurt you.”

The Trojans (8-3) ran off the first seven points of the game, but Shippensburg caught a spark and led by as much as 15-11 to open the second quarter. Its 2-3 zone caused Chambersburg’s offense some issues, at least for a while.

“When the game started out, we were not where we were supposed to be,” Trojan coach Shawn Shreffler said. “When we got to the right place, we were able to pop up on the glass.

“We figured it out, and then we’d either knock down a shot, or get a rebound or maybe get a pass inside to get the bigs involved.”

Mostly that was Kelly, who scored 11 of his team’s 13 points in the second quarter on two layups, three rebound baskets and a free throw to complete a three-point play.

The Greyhounds (5-5) stayed in the game thanks to some fine play from guards Trae Kater (17 points), a senior, and Cole Trn (13 points), a freshman. Kater made some strong drives and hit three 3-pointers, while Trn showed good handle and dropped in a couple of tough jumpers.

“Kater and Trn had really nice games,” Shreffler said.

A buzzer-beating layup by Graison Michajluk put Ship within 24-21 at halftime, but Chambersburg outscored the Hounds 21-10 in the third period. Kelly had eight of those points, including two on a fast break slam, as the lead swelled to 45-31.

Shreffler said, “We were able to throw a bunch of guys out there and we played with pace at times, but I think for long stretches, they controlled the pace.”

Lewis said, “I’m thrilled. We haven’t practiced well lately and we really struggled last night (in a lopsided loss to 11-1 Waynesboro). But if we can play like we did tonight, we’ll be fine.”

NOTES: Jacob Bassham contributed 9 points for Chambersburg … The Trojans shot 11-for-29 in the first half, but improved to 12-for-22 in the second half … Michajluk had 6 points and a ton of rebounds for Ship.

Chambersburg 55, Shippensburg 42
SHIPPENSBURG
Cole Trn 6 0-0 13, Trae Kater 6 2-4 17, Graison Michajluk 3 0-0 6, Drew Chamberlin 1 0-0 2, Jackson Stought 1 0-2 2, Thayne Stine 0 0-0 0, Reid Getric 0 0-0 0, Jesse Kelso 1 0-0 2, Jay’saun Gonzalez 0 0-0 0, Mason Fogelsonger 0 0-0 0. Totals 18 2-6 42.
CHAMBERSBURG
Jacob Bassham 4 0-1 9, Ari Snyder 0 0-0 0, Carter Fogal 1 1-1 3, Konnor Whorley 0 2-2 2, Stanley Lozius 1 0-0 3, Colton Cornwell 1 0-0 3, J.J. Kelly 13 1-1 27, Aden Swatsburg 0 0-0 0, Sedrick Vessah 1 0-0 3, Talon Brewer 0 0-0 0, Treyton Sarvis 1 0-0 3, Jermere Jones 1 0-0 2. Totals 23 4-5 55.
Shippensburg              13      8    10      9    —    42
Chambersburg            11    13    21    10    —    55
3-point shots — Ship 4 (Kater 3, Trn); Chbg 5 (Bassham, Lozius, Cornwell, Vessah, Sarvis). Shooting — Ship 17-44 (39%); Chbg 23-51 (45%). Turnovers — Ship 12; Chbg 8.