A magical night for Wellsboro's Prough
By: Chris Manning | Towanda Daily Review | March 7, 2018 | Photo courtesy Chris Manning
MONTOURSVILLE — Dalton Prough needed 26 points to reach 1,000 career points against Loyalsock last Saturday.
Typically, kids who do know they are close have it on their minds as they get closer.
But in the District IV, Class AAA title game, Prough wasn't thinking about the milestone.
"Definitely not, definitely not," he said. "I knew I was close, but I didn't think I had that many points to be honest."
He finished with 27 points and got his 1,000th on a free throw with under three minutes to play.
In a contentious game, though, nobody was going to tell him. In fact, Prough found out from an unlikely source.
"I didn't know that I got it until (Loyalsock's) Gerald Ross told me coming back from the line," explained Prough.
That's quite a way to be welcomed to the 1,000th point club — informed by an opposing team's best player, who just scored his 1,000th point a couple weeks ago, after beating them for a district title.
"He played a heck of a game," Wellsboro coach Todd Outman said about Prough. "What a great opportunity for him to score his 1,000th point in the district title game."
Outman felt with Prough out there leading them that there was no way they were going to lose the district title.
"He was going to do what he has to do and we talk about great players that step up in big games and he obviously did that," Outman remarked.
Much like the boys' basketball program Outman has built, Prough leans on the experience from those who came before him. More specifically, his two older brothers Dylan and Dawson. They've spurred him on this year as much as anything.
"I get texts as soon as I wake up," explained Prough. "‘You better go out there, you've got to leave it all out on the floor, this is your time.' They're super supportive; they've made me strive to do my best. It's quite a learning experience watching them play."
And this past weekend, they got to watch their brother not only score his 1,000th point, but also bring home a district title.
