A season full of games away from its home base was daunting enough for the Liverpool boys basketball. The prospect of an 0-2 start, and yet another big lead squandered to one of its big rivals in a high-profile setting was far worse to ponder.
The Warriors just avoided that fate in Saturday night’s nightcap of the Peppino’s Invitational at Onondaga Community College’s Allyn Hall, hanging on to defeat Cicero-North Syracuse 59-56 just 24 hours after its season opened with a 54-50 loss to Bishop Ludden.
C-NS had also dropped its opener, squandering a fourth-quarter lead to Rome Free Academy in an 82-74 defeat, and was just as determined to avoid back-to-back losses as this rivalry renewed itself on the OCC floor Liverpool will use as its home court while its gymnasium is rebuilt.
The Warriors never trailed after the game’s first two minutes. Jacob Works led them early, pouring in 15 of his 19 points in the first half as Liverpool steadily built a 33-19 margin.
Still down 36-23 at the break, C-NS began to battle back in the third quarter, and fans on both sides pondered the notion that the basketball Northstars would do what its football counterparts did to Liverpool a month earlier in the Section III Class AA semifinals – namely, make a large comeback and gain an unlikely victory.
The tension only grew in the fourth quarter as both teams went more than three minutes without a point, the score stuck at 50-44. Even though its field-goal drought continued, the Northstars used free throws to cut the margin in half, to 50-47, with nearly two minutes to play.
Then Works, held scoreless so far in the second half, hit on a pair of crucial baskets in between a Brayden McLean jumper. That made it 54-49, setting up a parade to the foul line in the final minute.
Though C-NS got within three twice and then within two in the final second of the game, the Warriors hit enough free throws to hang on. Jack Pento converted four times at the line and had seven of his 12 points in the fourth quarter as Kyle Caves got all nine of his points in the second half.
For the Northstars, Brian Bonin earned 12 points, with Luke Paragon getting 11 points. Grant Sennett finished with 10 points as Kevin Felasco, Jerrod Hills and Brayden McLean had seven points apiece.
Back on Friday, Liverpool had taken on Bishop Ludden, and managed just one field goal in the first six minutes as the Gaelic Knights roared out in front and stayed there throughout the first half.
Despite this, and despite 25 turnovers, the Warriors hung in there and held a 46-44 lead with less than four minutes left. The Gaelic Knights then rattled off six straight points to lead 50-46 before Romeo Clarke hit a 3-pointer with 1:16 left to cut the margin to one.
But all that Liverpool could manage in the final minute was a single free throw. Caves and Works each finished with 11 points, while Jacob Vacco had nine points and Pento got eight points. Monte Johnson (20 points) and Mykell Kaigler (19 points) paced Ludden.
As for C-NS, its battle with RFA went back and forth all night. Brian Bonin (11 points) and Jerrod Hills (10 points) both hit double figures in the first half to keep the Northstars close, though it trailed 39-32 at the break.
Then the third quarter belonged to C-NS as it outscored the Black Knights 26-8, the surge capped by a Brayden McLean layup that made it 58-47 going to the final period.
Somehow, RFA made up that margin and, in the final two minutes, moved out in front, Hunter Frisch putting in the go-ahead basket, and ultimately using free throws to extend its margin.
Bonin still had 28 points and eight rebounds, while Sennett had 15 points and 12 rebounds. McLean got 10 points as Damien Call led the Black Knights with 26 points, helped by Andrew Recco (18 points) and Jordan Baldwin (15 points).
