Shepherd twins lead Tower Hill to first DIAA basketball state title
WILMINGTON, Del. (BVM) – Twin brothers Dean and Dylan Shepherd had high expectations for themselves coming into the 2021-22 basketball season. Both juniors were ranked among the top 30 players in Delaware prior to the season, so people were looking for them to excel while leading Tower Hill. What people outside of the Hillers’ locker room probably didn’t expect was a state championship, something the program had never done before.
The Shepherds made sure to change that narrative. As the No. 3 seed in the Delaware Interscholastic Athletic Association boys basketball championship, Tower Hill was able to advance to the championship round, a first for the program, and were able to upset No. 1 seed Salesianum in convincing fashion winning the championship 79-43, tying for the most lopsided victory in the event’s history.
“That game was really special,” Dean said. “Just getting there, all the hard work you put in with coaches, practices, players, film, it gives you a sigh of relief. You are one of the very few people in history who will ever get to play in the state championship and I didn’t want to take the opportunity for granted and I don’t think my teammates did either.”
“I was so thankful to play at [The Bob Carpenter Center], so I really tried to take the opportunity and use it for the best of us,” Dylan said.
Boys’ basketball won the state championship for the first time in Hiller history!!! 🏆🏀🎉 The Hillers defeated No. 1 seed Salesianum 79-43. Congratulations to Coach Pat Kaiser ’02 and the entire team on an amazing, history-making season! pic.twitter.com/fa2n6h4o1e
— Tower Hill School (@THSDE) March 13, 2022
Leading the charge for the Hillers were the two Shepherd boys. Dylan led the team’s scoring with 24 points, including hitting 12-of-14 free throws, and Dean added 18 points, good for third on the team behind his brother and senior big man Davis Bland, and led the Hillers with eight rebounds. In one of the most efficient high school basketball games one could see, with Tower Hill finishing the game shooting 63.9% from the field, 61.9% from the 3-point line and 76.9% from the charity stripe, the brothers were extremely accurate with their shots as Dylan went 5-of-7 from the field and 2-of-3 from beyond the arc while Dean went 7-of-11 from the field and 2-for-5 from deep.
“I think we executed that game plan well,” Dean said. “We were shooting the lights out in the first half, I think I shot a three, then Dylan shot a three, then Davis shot a three and the cycle just repeated. We all trusted each other to shoot the ball.”
“Every game at the Bob, we came out hot, we made our shots and we really wanted it,” Dylan said.
The path to the title wasn’t an easy one, the way many championships are won. Heartbreak came first. A year ago, the No. 4-seeded Hillers fell to eventual champion and No. 1 seed Sanford 50-49, a closer margin of victory than the state title match that season.
“That game specifically motivated us,” Dean said. “Just coming off that feeling we had last year in the locker room, seeing all our senior guys down from that loss because we really wanted to win and go to the [championship]. It really motivated us this year, that’s what we talked about every single practice.”
“Last year in the semifinal game we were so close, like one basket away,” Dylan said. “We knew that this year we could make it back with the team we had, everybody works hard, everybody likes being around each other so those two qualities we used to get better every game which helped us win the championship.”
Using that loss as motivation, the Shepherds led Tower Hill to an impressive 16-3 regular season record and the No. 3 seed in the statewide tournament. After cruising to an easy 60-44 win over Delmar, the Hillers were given their toughest battle of the entire season and it was the Shepherds who helped them overcome the adversity.
Despite being favored against the No. 22 seed St. Mark’s, Tower Hill would find itself in the battle of a lifetime as the game would go into quadruple overtime. Seemingly every time the Hillers needed a clutch bucket, one of the Shepherds had the answer.
Down two in the third overtime, Dean would steal the ball and go coast-to-coast for an easy bucket to tie the game. After free throws put St. Mark’s up 39-37, Dylan would grab a loose ball before making a layup as time expired to send the game to its fourth overtime. Dylan would then end the night with a game-winning jumper with one second left to give Tower Hill the decisive victory. Dylan finished the game with a team-high 17 points, including the two points that sealed the win.
“That game was really awesome, it was probably my favorite game of the year,” Dean said. “We really had to dig deep into our bench and trust the guys who were coming off the bench to make key plays which they did. Having the final shot at the end, Dylan hit the dagger, it was crazy. The crowd went crazy, the energy was there, it was pretty awesome.”
“We played three different overtime games early in the season, those games really prepared us for the St. Mark’s game I think,” Dylan said. “We had experience playing deep basketball in overtime quarters so playing those games helped us with St. Mark’s for sure.”
Blessed to be apart of something special. Yesterday was a battle! @hernandez_r_ @CoachJ_Loeffler @matt_colpoys @DerekGlasser12 @RiceCoachPera @CoachElkin @tysboogie21 @COACHJBRAD @Coach_DSloan @CoachJonJaques @Fonzoni @Kevrock11kw https://t.co/MFuJsN6GBS
— Dylan Shepherd (@DylanShep302) March 6, 2022
The next two games would not be nearly as exciting for the Hillers, as they jumped out to an early first quarter lead against Seaford and would win handily 58-42, with Dylan scoring 16 and Dean scoring 13. Against Salesianum, Tower Hill would never trail in the game, coasting to their first state championship.
“Just to walk the seniors off with a championship ring meant a lot to our program let alone the first state championship our state had ever gotten,” Dean said.
“It feels good, me and Dean put in a lot of work over the summertime to get back in the position we were last year, lots of late nights and early mornings,” Dylan said. “But it feels really good because all the hard work paid off and now we’re celebrating.”
Given the boys’ strong play throughout the season and in the playoffs, the two brothers have also seen an increase in recruiting. The hope is that one day they will both be able to lace up the shoes together at the college level.
“That’s always been a dream of mine to play with my brother at the collegiate level,” Dean said. “I would really be excited to do that. I feel like our games would play off each other and we could make things happen if we were able to play together at the college level.”
“We could be like Marcus and Markieff Morris in the NBA right now,” Dylan said. “It would be really nice, we know the probability is probably low, but there’s always a chance and if we get the opportunity we’re going to take full advantage of it and win some games.”
Expectations are something the Shepherds are used to. Having another season left in their Hillers careers, the twin duo will likely be heading into their senior season with their greatest expectations so far. With the Tower Hill basketball team set to start its season with a target on its back for the first time in program history, the Shepherds will look to once again live up to their billing as a couple of Delaware’s top players.
“For this next season I want to run it back,” Dean said. “I want to get another one.”
“It is our senior year, it is our last year playing high school basketball so we just need to try and enjoy the moment as much as we can,” Dylan said. “We just need to try our best to make it back next year and we know that’s going to be a process but we can definitely do it.”
