As if a big victory over Henninger on Dec. 22 wasn’t nice enough, the Baldwinsville boys basketball team was poised for an even bigger victory when it roared back in the fourth quarter of last Wednesday’s game against Section V power Greece Athena in the opening round of the Hilton Tournament west of Rochester.
But the magic ran out when the game went to overtime, and the Trojans rebounded to defeat the Bees 74-69. Still, the game was a reminder of what B’ville could accomplish if it managed to string together a full night’s effort.
That didn’t happen early. Greece Athena, best known as the school where John Wallace became a star before his great career at Syracuse University, traded baskets with the Bees in the early going before taking over in the second quarter, steadily building a 35-25 halftime lead.
When that deficit grew to 52-37 going to the fourth quarter, things looked bleak for B’ville, but at just that moment its pressure, combined with hot outside shooting, created a fourth-quarter surge that brought the Bees even with the Trojans. 63-63, and force OT.
Greece Athena outscored B’ville 10-6 in those four extra minutes, but the effort was still worth applauding. Jacob Marshall led with 18 points, with Casey Pluff adding 13 points and Matt Dickman 10 points. David Cerqua and Chris Taylor had nine points apiece as Gabe Horan contributed seven points.
What followed, in Thursday’s consolation game against Lancaster (Section VI), was another overtime thriller, only this time the Bees didn’t need a massive comeback to send it beyond regulation and, more importantly, won the game, edging the Legends 67-66.
Here, it went from a high-scoring first quarter where Lancaster took a 24-19 lead to single-digit points by both teams in the next period. But it stayed tight, and B’ville, trailing 46-44 with one quarter left, did enough to tie it again, 58-58, and push the Legends to OT.
During that extra period, B’ville inched in front and stayed there, having seen Marshall lead the way with 14 points. Most of Taylor’s 13 points came from four 3-pointers as Cerqua and Brandon Mimas gained 11 points apiece. Horan and Pluff each had eight points.
The win lifted B’ville’s overall record to 4-2 as it returns to CNY Counties League action next Tuesday at Corcoran before a big Jan. 6 showdown with visiting West Genesee.
