Even in the years when it won back-to-back state Class B boys basketball championships in 2014 and ’15, Westhill found it difficult to deal with Skaneateles.
So when things stayed close through much of the first half of Thursday’s edition of the Warriors-Lakers series, it wasn’t too surprising. What was noticeable, though, was the way things got out of hand during the second half of a 69-33 defeat to the Warriors.
This was only the fourth game of the season for the Lakers, still breaking in a fairly new starting lineup. Westhill, who had roared to a 3-0 start, also had plenty of new faces, but they included reserves from seasons past thrust into new roles and determined to stand out.
A low-scoring first quarter had Skaneateles within three, 13-10, and though the margin widened a bit in the second period, the Lakers were still within one long scoring run of climbing back in it, only trailing 29-18 at the break.
Westhill’s man-to-man pressure took a serious toll, though, and mistakes compounded throughout a second half where the Warriors got big efforts from Sean Dadey, who had 16 points, six rebounds and four assists, and Kamren Jackson, who earned 14 points and eight rebounds.
No one on Skaneateles matched those numbers, and in fact no one even reached double figures. Jeremy Castle got close, with nine points, as did Justin McClanahan, who had eight points as he and Castle both converted a pair of 3-pointers. Jake Reed contributed four points.
At 1-3 on the season, Skaneateles gets another major test next Tuesday as it visits Jamesville-DeWitt, kicking off a stretch of three games in four nights that also includes next Thursday’s visit from Central Square and next Friday’shome battle with OHSL Liberty division newcomer Pulaski.
