J.J. Starling could only watch as the Baldwinsville boys basketball team he had led to so much success in the 2018-19 season had its dream of a breakthrough post-season victory get dashed.
Ultimately, the absence of the Bees’ leading scorer and freshman catalyst had a lot to do with its 56-49 defeat to West Genesee in Tuesday night’s Section III Class AA quarterfinal in Camillus.
Once ahead by 13 points in the third quarter, B’ville, the no. 7 seed, underwent a prolonged field goal drought that covered most of the rest of the game, allowing the Wildcats to rally and advance to Sunday’s sectional semifinal against Rome Free Academy.
All seemed possible for the Bees when the night got underway. It had rolled past Utica Proctor 68-49 in the opening round of the sectional tournament, and carried plenty of confidence, for now B’ville was facing the same West Genesee side it had handled 76-61 just two weeks earlier.
Nothing that happened in the first quarter discouraged those thoughts, with the Bees trading baskets until Starling drilled a 3-pointer right before the period ended, putting his team back in front 16-14.
But when Starling drove to the basket and hit a layup in the opening minute of the second quarter, he was injured, limping to the bench moments later and, as it turned out, was unable to return.
At first, the Bees made up for Startling’s absence. Sunday Joshua had nine first-half points and Josh Marshall eight points to pace a well-balanced attack that built a 32-20 advantage late in the half.
Though WG cut the margin to 34-26 by intermission, B’ville appeared to regain control with back-to-back baskets from Dan Fabrizio at the start of the second half.
Then, after a pair of Will Amica free throws, Marshall converted a 3-pointer with 6:14 left in the third quarter, extending B’ville’s lead to 41-28. And that was the Bees’ last field goal until the last 90 seconds of the game.
B’ville didn’t get another point in that third period, its attack slowed down and smothered by WG’s defensive pressure without the presence of Starling to draw attention and, perhaps, open looks for his teammates.
Gradually, the lead vanished until Kam Jones’ layup in the opening seconds of the fourth quarter put the Wildcats in front to stay. Despite this, the Bees’ own defense kept things close, even as the empty possessions continued to pile up.
It wasn’t until Adam Dudzinski’s 3-pointer with 2:11 left, plus free throws from John Benson, made it 51-43 that the 12-plus minute field goal drought ended, on a Marshall 3-pointer, but the Bees never got closer again.
Marshall led with 14 points, just ahead of Fabrizio (12 points) and Joshua (10 points). Amica and Lucas Sutherland set the pace for the Wildcats, each getting 19 points.
So a 10-9 season ended for B’ville as Marshall, Joshua, Eric Casey, Max Dec and Cam Weatherly graduate, with Starling, Fabrizio, Bo Nicholson, Nate Ray and Chase Trombley set to return in 2019-20.
