Jamison needed just seven points to reach the 1,000 point threshold and very early it was evident that it was just a matter of when Jamison would get his seventh point. Just two points away, Jamison pulled up for a mid range jump shot that just missed the mark, Silver Creek kicked the ball back out and Jamison sunk a big shot from downtown to etch his name into the history books as a 1,000 point scorer.

“It feels like another bucket,” Jamison said about the lead up and scoring his 1,000th point. “I thought I was going to play my regular game. Get a couple buckets off the press, then shoot my shot.”

After the bucket, the whole gymnasium erupted into complete pandemonium. The game was paused to allow Jamison’s family to take a picture with him and his 1,000 point ball. Silver Creek rode the energy of Jamison’s accomplishment to a dominant league win over Gowanda, 88-32.

“It felt great… it felt amazing,” Jamison said about actually hitting the shot that gave him 1,000 points. “I couldn’t do it without anyone… without the boys, my momma, my dad and all my coaches.”

OBSERVER Photo by Christian Storms Silver Creek's Dom Jamison (20) dribbles past Gowanda's Cole Herman (4) during the Black Knights 88-32 victory over the Panthers at Silver Creek High School.

The Black Knights came out the gates early and took advantage of the Panthers offense that had struggled all season long by implementing an aggressive full court press. Gowanda struggled moving the ball and the Black Knights defense thrived generating plenty of turnovers early.

The early lead was established by Jeremy Wilcox scoring the first couple of baskets for Silver Creek as they established an early lead, then came the man of the evening, Dom Jamison. Jamison hit a big 3-point shot and immediately followed it up on the press as he grabbed a steal to get an easy layup that brought him within two points of the 1,000 point goal.

With a 9-2 lead, on the next possession Jamison attempted a half-court shot the clanged off the rim. Jamison looked to his bench and the student section with a big smile after attempting the most unorthodox way to reach 1,000 points.

“That was planned. I was going to do that once I was a bucket away,” Jamison said about the half-court attempt.

A couple possessions later, Jamison finally was able to sink a shot from beyond the arc — not quite half-court — but still from downtown to enter the 1,000 point club.

“I’ve never coached a kid like Dom,” stated Silver Creek head coach Ralph Jackson. “When it’s time to get after it he’ll get after it… he just gets it. He’s played a lot of basketball, he just brings that awareness to the team.”

Once Jamison reached his seventh point, the Black Knights offense did not stop. Silver Creek’s offense in the first quarter was hitting everything that was thrown up and if it didn’t go in, the Black Knights big men Wilcox and Spencer Harford were able to grab the rebounds. After the first, Silver Creek led Gowanda 25-5.

As the game wore on into the second quarter, the Black Knights offense continued to cook and eventually built its lead to 40-12. By the end of the first half, all but one Silver Creek player had their name on the scoresheet and Gowanda still struggled to manifest any consistent offense.

“We definitely have guys that score on the team,” added Coach Jackson. “When we’re playing our best we’re spreading it around and teams can’t key in on Dom. I’ve never had someone coaching, that’s been able to score like Dom does, but it’s nice when everyone is involved and he’s able to spread it out to everyone.”

The Panthers played their best quarter in the third, scoring 12 of the final 32 points. Unfortunately for Gowanda, there was no chance they would be able to muster up a comeback against the potent Silver Creek offense, especially on such a special night for the team. Gowanda’s offensive leader was Tyee Nagel with 12 points.

“There were a few things, especially with Tyee Nagel,” Gowanda head coach Christian Barczykowski said what he liked from his team in the game. “He started finishing right around mid-range. That’s where I like to see him play, that’s where he gets his money. Unfortunately, Adam Colden got injured, but he was starting to be a force down low and he ends up hurting his foot so he wasn’t as explosive as he could have been.”

Silver Creek’s offense continued to shine in the second half and it was highlighted by a dunk from Sam Braidich and everyone on the roster getting on the scoresheet. Darren Jimenez ended up being the Black Knights leading scorer with 21 points, while Harford scored 15 points and grabbed eight rebounds and Jamison, Wilcox and Matt Woleben all finished with 10 points.

“We played well. Obviously we got a lot of people involved today,” Coach Jackson said about the team’s performance. “Everyone on the team scored tonight which is great. We have got a lot of guys on the team that are capable of scoring.”

The Black Knights will look to continue towards their goal of getting a banner on Monday when they host Salamanca.

“We’re going to get ourselves a banner,” stated Jamison about what his next goal was.

Gowanda is back in action on Monday when they host Portville.