In very different manners, and in very different roles, the Fayetteville-Manlius and Christian Brothers Academy boys basketball teams stepped into the Section III Class AA playoff fray.
The Hornets do so as a red-hot top seed, having won eight in a row, all by big margins, since that Jan. 17 defeat to Henninger, capped by last Tuesday’s 89-48 victory over Auburn.
It was Senior Night for seven F-M players – John Schurman, Louis Avellino, Mike Hoalcraft, John Stone, Sean Brown, Alex Leuze and Jake Pulver – and having a 4-13 opponent like Auburn as the guest may have caused some early relaxation on the defensive side.
Gradually, that would change as the Hornets nearly doubled up the Maroons, 25-13, in the second quarter to extend its lead to 46-29. Then it really took charge, maintaining its high-scoring ways during a 43-19 domination of the second half.
Schurman picked up 20 points, adding eight rebounds. Avellino put together 12 points, six rebounds, four steals and three assists, while Hoalcraft had 14 points and six rebounds. Stone had nine points and David Stegemann seven points as Jake Wittig managed 10 points and 10 assists.
Once it had that top seed, F-M waited out last Friday’s first-round game between no. 8 seed Oswego and No. 9 seed Liverpool, and the Warriors prevailed, 61-48, setting up a quarterfinal against the Hornets, who beat Liverpool twice in the regular season. The survivor gets Cicero-North Syracuse or West Genesee in Saturday’s semifinals at SRC Arena.
Christian Brothers Academy was the no. 6 seed and would have to play no. 11 seed Nottingham in Saturday’s opening round. A home-court advantage, and some fine all-around teamwork, would send the Brothers past the Bulldogs 58-44.
The two neighboring schools rarely meet on the court, so that, combined with playoff intensity, led to a tightly-played first half. CBA’s man-to-man pressure proved more effective that their Bulldog counterparts, and by halftime it was 28-23 in the Brothers’ favor.
Neither side could make a serious run until the fourth quarter, when CBA gradually got clear, helped in no small part by a well-balanced, productive attack.
Charlie Russo led with 16 points, with Monte Stroman managing 13 points. Mike Trasolini finished with 11 points as Dante Hatem added 10 points and Dylan Lambert eight points, to go with 11 rebounds. For Nottingham, Nathan Knight (12 points) and Marcus McDonald (10 points) led the way.
And this leads to a Class AA quarterfinal Tuesday that pits CBA against defending champion Henninger, who blasted the Brothers 72-48 back on Dec. 30 at the Bottar-Leone Holiday Classic.
Now the stakes would be higher – namely, a spot against Utica Proctor or Baldwinsville in those same AA semifinals F-M wants to get to as it tries to end its 59-year wait for a sectional title.
