A quartet of area high school boys basketball teams each faced various sets of expectations in the last full week of January.
Fayetteville-Manlius was charged with trying to contain Baldwinsville’s sensational sophomore, J.J. Starling, last Friday night, and did an admirable job of it, yet still lost to the Bees 67-55.
All through the first half, hot outside shooting allowed F-M to keep pace with B’ville. The Hornets trailed by just two, 38-36, at the break, and stayed within range during the third quarter, too.
Like every other Bees opponent, the aim was to keep Starling from big numbers, and though he did have 23 points, F-M made Starling work hard for those numbers.
Despite all this, B’ville got away by playing tough defense in the final minutes and having Bo Nicholson give big-time scoring support to Starling as Nicholson finished with 21 points.
No one on the Hornets could match those totals. Charlie Gadsden and Josh Michel each had 12 points, with Trevor Roe getting eight points and Luke Davidson adding six points.
That same night, Jamesville-DeWitt met a Fulton side that had quietly built a 9-3 record, though one of those defeats was to the Red Rams 75-53 on Dec. 20.
A month later, very little changed, J-D again handling Fulton 71-47 even after a wild first quarter that saw the Rams have to battle to gain a 19-17 lead.
Over the course of the next two periods, though, the Red Raiders were limited to just 17 points, J-D’s defense making all kinds of stops while its attack continued to perform well.
At the forefront, Payton Shumpert got 23 points, adding seven rebounds and four assists. The trio of Trey Autry, Gunther Schnorr and John Marshall Withers each gained 11 points and Preston Shumpert had seven points.
East Syracuse Minoa had little trouble in last Wednesday’s game against PSLA-Fowler, defeating the Falcons 63-43.
Improving its record to 11-2, the state Class A no. 26-ranked Spartans opened with a 22-7 first quarter and built a 56-29 lead through three periods before resting its starters late.
Nick Peterson finished with 13 points, while Devin Mascato-Buffaloe had 12 points. Matt Burchill-Wright got 11 points as Jimmy Ferns put in six points.
Of far more importance was the way ESM played, on both sides of the ball, against Auburn last Friday night. Ignoring the Maroons’ 9-4 record, the Spartans were terrific in every aspect of the game in smashing them 65-33.
As the game wore on, ESM’s defense only seemed to improve, and in the second and third quarters it left Auburn far behind, outscoring them 44-13.
Peterson, with his 22 points, got plenty of support from Ferns, who gained 15 points. Burchill-Wright remained steady with nine points as no Maroons player scored in double figures.
Manlius-Pebble Hill put together back-to-back wins for the first time this season, improving its post-season chances.
On Jan. 17, the Trojans defeated LaFayette 65-58, overcoming an early 17-8 deficit and, in the third quarter, outscoring the Lancers 18-7 to move out in front for good.
Aside from his 28 points, James Kelly earned 13 rebounds, three assists and two steals. Alex Abrams had a big night, too, with 18 points and seven rebounds as Shontez Anderson got eight points, seven rebounds and four assists.
Then, in last Wednesday”s game against Stockbridge Valley, MPH prevailed 66-52, using a 21-9 push through the second quarter to gain control.
Kelly had nearly half the Trojans’ output, earning 30 points. Anderson gained 14 points, with Isiah Clary adding six points.
