Knoch dominates Deer Lakes for section win

By: Antonio Rossetti
Friday, January 30, 2026 | 10:35 PM

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Knoch didn’t just knock on Deer Lakes’ door. The Knights barged in and outdueled the Lancers on their senior night with a 50-29 victory and kept themselves in first place in Section 1-4A.

Teegan Finucan spearheaded the Knights, delivering 18 points.

“He’s locked in for every game,” teammate Liam Avon said. “That just inspires everyone to be better and play their best. Before the game, he gets everyone ready, and then he goes out there and does what he does. He leads by example every night.”

Finucan’s motor and timely shots impressed coach Joe Lafko. He drilled a buzzer-beater to go up 28-11 into halftime and hit a dagger 3 later in the game, preventing any chance at a Deer Lakes comeback.

“Teegan really got us going, especially in the first half with his 3-point shooting. He gave us a big spark offensively and then came up with a huge corner 3 in the fourth quarter. At that point in the game, that was a really big shot for us.”

The Knights defense took care of business, holding Deer Lakes to four points in the first quarter, 11 for the half.

“I’m really proud of our kids’ effort tonight,” Lafko said. “We gave great effort on defense, guarded their top scorers well and held them in check for most of the game. I give a lot of credit to everyone on the defensive end.”

Knoch smothered Deer Lakes, keeping it scoreless the first four minutes of play.

“Vinnie (DeFelice) and Roman (DeFelice) were given the assignment to guard Collin Rodgers, who scores the ball really well, and we also asked them to take on some of their other top players. I thought they accepted that challenge and competed really hard.”

The DeFelice brothers met Rodgers with a double-team every drive. They held him to five points.

Vinnie DeFelice added 15 points, and Avon racked up 10 points and 12 rebounds.

“I’m just doing my role,” Avon said. “Me and Derek (Lang) down there, we’re just getting all the rebounds. We were playing a zone for a lot of the night, so our guards boxing out really helps us a lot. That makes it easier for me to get those rebounds and points. My teammates — Roman and the other guards — are creating for everyone, and that just makes the game easier for me.”

Said Lafko: “Liam has the capability of doing that for us on any given night. I’m really proud of his effort tonight. He rebounded the ball extremely well, and he and Derek both did a great job for us on the boards.”

The Knights outrebounded the Lancers, 29-13, and Lang grabbed six of the boards.

“I thought our rebounding was really strong tonight,” Lafko said. “We did a good job finishing possessions, and when you rebound the way we did, it allows you to get out and play the way we want to play on both ends of the floor.”

The defense forcing misses and getting into transition led to success.

“We really turned up the defense tonight,” Avon said. “That’s something we’ve been focusing on a lot in practice. Coach has been honest with us because our defense hasn’t been as good as it should be recently, so we knew we had to turn it up. We knew who they were and who we needed to guard, and I thought we did a good job of shutting them down.”

The Knights held the Lancers to four points. After an and-one Finucan layup, Knoch led 13-4 at the end of one. Knoch opened the game with two 3s, one from Vinnie DeFelice and the other from Lang.

The Lancers were held to one field goal for the first twelve minutes of the game. Down 20-4, Rodgers ended a Knoch 12-0 run with a 3.

The Knights led 28-11 at halftime after Finucan, who tallied 13 first half points, buried a buzzer-beater 3.

In the third quarter, Lang threw a full-court pass to Vinnie DeFelice, who mustered a circus-shot and-1 to go up 37-15. DeFelice was fouled and spun, but halfway to the ground let go of the shot and made it.

The Knights went on a 12-2 run to go up 46-17, the largest lead of the game.

The Lancers defense forced seven turnovers within the first four minutes to spark a 9-0 run that cut it to 46-26.

Rodgers finished with five points, five assists and five steals. Evan Moore tallied 12 points.

Moore, a junior, is happy to play with the seniors one last time at home.

“They’re a big influence, especially in practice,” Moore said. “They’re always telling everyone to get better and make sure you’re doing everything right. They help a lot. They’re a big influence on the team.”

Moore commented on Finucan and, although he didn’t guard him one-on-one, the challenges he gives defenses when he drives to the hole.

“Teegan’s a good player,” Moore said. “He can drive downhill really well. You just have to stay in front of him and not let him get to the rim, but it’s hard. He’s really good at it.”

The Lancers outscored the Knights, 12-6, in the fourth, ending with some momentum. Moore said the team looks to carry the surge into its next games.

“The momentum really started after halftime, he said. “We came out knowing we needed to step it up because we did horrible in the first half. We knew we needed to pick it up, and we went on a little run. It wasn’t enough, but it helped us get back into it and gave us some momentum.”

As for Knoch, they remain at the top of the section.

“I’ve been saying it all year how proud I am of this group. They’ve been through a lot since the beginning of the season and had to learn a whole new system and a new language, so to speak. They’ve been resilient throughout. They battle night in and night out, and we’re really looking forward to finishing out the regular season and seeing what happens in the postseason.”

Tags: Deer Lakes, Knoch