A Newtown Square teenager delighted the crowd at a recent 76ers game by completing the 45-second Chick-fil-A Basketball Challenge, write Matt Mullin and Kyle Neubeck for PhillyVoice.

Mike Shelly, 17, won everyone in the crowd a free chicken biscuit from Chick-fil-A by sinking a 3-pointer and half-court shot in the final seconds of the challenge.

Shelly quickly made the first two shots – a layup and free throw – but had a bit of a problem with the 3-pointer. However, 10 seconds before time ran out, it went in, leaving him with one chance at the half-court shot. That was enough, as his heave hit the mark, bringing the entire Wells Fargo Center to its feet.

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“When it went in, it was the loudest I’d heard the place all night,” said Shelly.

Challenges are nothing new to the Marple Newtown senior. During his freshman year, he was diagnosed with stage IV Burkitt lymphoma, a rare and aggressive form of cancer that he successfully beat more than a year ago.

Heading into this school year, Shelly tragically lost his 20-year-old brother, Andrew, in an early-morning traffic accident.

“Although what I’ve been through is a lot and it sucks, you just have to make the best out of it and take what you can from it,“ said Shelly.

Read more about Mike Shelly from PhillyVoice by clicking here.

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