Salem shoots down Lions at line;
sets up Northville showdown

Feb. 10, 2010, 1:15 a.m.

  Salem's boys basketball team held an impromptu Free-Throw-A-Thon during Tuesday night's crucial KLAA Central clash against visiting South Lyon.

  When the game was over, the Rocks had collected an impressive 65-53 triumph over the Lions.

  Salem attempted a whopping 47 free throws, connecting on 32. Twenty-eight of the freebies came in the fourth quarter during which the Rocks did not cash in on one field goal.

  The victory improved Salem's record to 7-8 overall and 3-6 in the division. It also set up a crucial showdown at home Friday night against Northville. The winner will likely earn the fourth and final KLAA tournament playoff spot in the division.

  "Your No. 1 goal always is to win the division, but if you can't do that, you want to get in the tournament," said Salem coach Bob Brodie. "Even though we'd be playing the No. 1 seed, you want to get in the dance so you can see what you can do.

  "I like how some of our younger kids are stepping up. Earlier this year, we'd have games where we'd fall apart for a quarter. That didn't happen tonight. We kept our composure the entire game."

  The Rocks were led by sophomore Tyler Stewart, who scored 20 points. Junior guard Devonta Riley added 14 and freshman forward Chris Dierker chipped in with a career-best 12.

  Dierker also led the Rocks in rebounding with 12.

  Salem built a 14-9 first-quarter lead and never trailed thereafter, building its advantage to 31-20 at the half and 43-30 after three quarters.

  All 20 of the Rocks' fourth-quarter points came from the charity stripe.

  South Lyon dropped to 6-9 overall and 3-6 in the division.

  Friday night's home game against Northville is set for 7 p.m. Northville won the first encounter between the two teams, 38-28, at Northville.