CENTRAL NEW YORK –
One particular highlight of the abbreviated area high school boys basketball season was seeing neighbors Cazenovia and Chittenango meet each other in the first week of March.
Twice, they would meet and both times the Bears finished on top, starting last Monday night when it held on late to prevail 51-45 over the Lakers.
Both Chittenango and Cazenovia carried 1-2 records into the game, with the Bears having just lost a narrow 58-56 decision to Oneida the night before, on Feb. 28.
And it was low-scoring in the first half, with the Lakers able to fight its way in front 19-15, only to see Chittenango find its shooting touch early in the second half.
Eventually the Bears led 46-35 midway through the fourth quarter, something Cazenovia could not overcome even though Alex Moesch led all scorers with 20 points.
A key for Chittenango was having two main threats as Tyrus Kelly had 18 points and James Miller got 17 points. No other Lakers player hit double figures, though A.J. Rothfeld (nine points) and Patrick Linck (eight points) got close.
They would have a rematch on Thursday, and it proved almost identical to the first encounter, again with the Bears holding off the Lakers, this time 52-48.
Where it differed was that it was Cazenovia getting out in front, steadily building a 25-20 halftime edge, before Chittenango caught up and took the lead late in the third quarter.
Moesch again carried the Lakers, earning 26 points, while Rothfeld had eight points, but Miller got 23 points and Bishop added 12 points for the Bears as they each converted four 3-pointers.
In between these Lakers-Bears clashes, Cazenovia added a game Wednesday against Jordan-Elbridge and proved quite impressive, routing the Eagles 71-45.
Much of this was due to the outside shooting of Linck and Moesch, the pair combining to hit seven 3-pointers as Linck finished with 24 points and Moesch added 22 points. Jordan Kuhn paced J-E with 13 points.
After it beat Cazenovia the first time, the Chittenango boys lost to Marcellus 56-47 a night later in a game where it trailed 28-16 at halftime and nearly caught up in the third quarter with a 21-10 surge.
Kelly, with 17 points, and Miller, with 14 points, led that push, but the Mustangs got away late behind the duo of Matt Kershaw and Cory Cangemi as Kershaw got 19 points and Cangemi had 17 points.
Chittenango tried to slow down undefeated Christian Brothers Academy on Saturday.afternoon and never got close to the Brothers in a 70-28 defeat.
CBA led 42-18 by halftime and then held the Bears without a field goal in the third quarter. Dawkins and Sean Rooney led Chittenango with six points apiece as all 13 Brothers players that saw action got on the scoreboard.
Up against Marcellus that same day, Cazenovia pushed the game into overtime, only to fall 54-50 to the Mustangs.
Moesch finished with 18 points, while Peter McCole had 10 points. Linck got nine points as Rothfeld and Jack Byrnes, with six points apiece, accounted for the rest of the offense. Kershaw led Marcellus with 21 points.
