Safe to say, the gap between the Westhill boys basketball team and most of the Section III Class B challengers remains large, but there’s a couple of notable exceptions.
When the Warriors met Chittenango in their first encounter since last March’s sectional final, it required a bit of last-second magic from Sean Dadey to pull out a 52-51 victory over the Bears.
As it started 6-0, no one had come close to Westhill in those first six games, but Chittenango had most of its lineup return from its 2016-17 sectional title run and remembered how the Warriors had crushed them twice a year ago – 63-43 in the regular season, 67-41 in the sectional final.
This proved a lot closer, with the Bears starting fast and gaining the lead before Westhill’s defense clamped down.
Yet even as the Warriors built a double-digit lead by the third quarter, the Bears were playing solid defense, taking everyone except Dadey and Zechariah Brown out of the attack.
Gradually, that margin shrunk as the game entered the homestretch. By the time they reached the final minute, Chittenango had gone in front, 51-49, and were one stop from a program-defining win.
Dadey made sure that didn’t happen. Aggressively, Dadey went to the basket, converted and was fouled. Then Dadey hit the free throw to break the 51-51 tie and then, for good measure, intercepted Zach Falkenburg’s last-ditch pass to preserve the win.
For the night, Dadey had 28 points, including five 3-pointers, while Brown had 10 points. Westhill contained Falkenburg, holding him to 13 points, but Dylan Voutsinas grabbed 20 points to lead Chittenango as Sam Hill had 10 points.
Two nights later, the Warriors were again pushed, by Syracuse Academy of Science and, again, pulled it out, this time by a 52-49 margin.
Though Westhill held the Atoms to seven points in the first quarter, it didn’t discourage SAS, who kept pace throughout the game’s middle stages and tied it, 42-42, going to the fourth quarter. Again, though, the Warriors’ defense came through, limiting SAS while producing enough on the other end.
Dadey led with 16 points, but John Geer also hit a pair of 3-pointers on his way to 14 points as Brown got 12 points. For SAS, Noreon Williams had a game-high 21 points as Zachaeus Smith added 13 points
Meanwhile, Jordan-Elbridge hosted Marcellus, and a big third quarter turned the game in the Eagles’ favor as it went on to edge the Mustangs 54-49.
They were tied going into the second quarter, but Marcellus moved out in front, 24-19. After the break, though, J-E took off, doubling up on the Mustangs 20-10 and then withstanding every late comeback attempt.
Jeremiah Sparks led the Eagles with 19 points. Brandon Wick and Aidan Carpenter each finished with eight points as Collin Barrigar and Dakota Holbrook had six points apiece.
For Marcellus, Ben Fedorenko put up 16 points, with Connor Wixson adding nine points. Luke Ingianni had seven points and Grayson Hoag gained six points.
Bishop Ludden faced Syracuse Academy of Science last Tuesday night and had to go through double overtime to beat the Atoms 69-65.
Up 17-10 through one quarter, the Gaelic Knights saw that lead vanish by halftime. SAS was up 29-27 at the break, and from there it stayed close the rest of regulation.
It was 50-50 going into overtime, and four minutes wasn’t enough, Ludden and SAS each scoring seven points. Only in the second OT did the Gaelic Knights go in front for good, overcoming 25 points and eight rebounds from the Atoms’ Noreon Williams.
Joe Connor finished with 19 points, while Ed Walser piled up 15 points and 12 rebounds, making up for the struggles of Jai Smith, who had just seven points. Nic Button finished with 12 points as Sh’ikem Lee gained eight points.
Two days earlier, Ludden had gone to Buffalo’s Daemen College for the Thruway Challenge and defeated St. Francis 63-56.
Connor proved tough to stop for the Gaelic Knights, pouring in a season-high 25 points. Smith, whose triple-double had helped beat Utica-Notre Dame in overtime on Dec. 15, had 14 points, with Walser also getting 14 points.
Marcellus got its own win last Tuesday night, holding off Altmar-Parish-Williamstown 48-42 in a contest where neither side could sustain any kind of run.
Still, the Mustangs muddled through largely thanks to Fedorenko’s game-high 18 points. Sam Grattan helped with nine points, while Wixson had seven points and Luke Ingianni added six points. Kyler Nichols led the Rebels with 14 points.
J-E visited Solvay last Monday night, and it proved a fun, fast-paced contest, with a big second quarter the difference for the Eagles as it held off the Bearcats 71-66.
Both sides had started well when, in the second period, the Eagles took off, outscoring Solvay 28-12. That created a 44-27 halftime cushion, which J-E needed since the Bearcats ate into that margin, especially in the fourth quarter.
To hang on, the Eagles needed four players to score in double figures. Sparks, with 19 points (eight of them free throws), led the way as Carpenter had 15 points and Brandon Wick had 14 points. Most of L.J. Barrigar’s 14 points came from four 3-pointers.
Meanwhile, on Solvay’s side, Justin Scott produced a game-high 20 points, while Brock Bagozzi had a season-high 15 points. Robby Clark had nine points as Darrius Williams and Kamren Harris had six points apiece.
