CENTRAL NEW YORK – A busy slate of boys basketball games last Tuesday were all postponed by winter weather, including a showdown between Fayetteville-Manlius and undefeated West Genesee, moved to Jan. 25.
Perhaps that had a lingering effect because, when the Hornets returned to action Friday against Henninger, it lost, 55-51, in overtime to the Black Knights.
A quick start was negated when F-M was held to four points in the second quarter, only to do the same to Henninger in the third to take a 33-30 lead.
That didn’t hold up, either, with the Black Knights rallying to force OT and then outscoring the Hornets 9-5 in the four-minute extra period. Luke Davidson led with 23 points, Max Danaher adding 11 points as Trevor Roe got eight points and Patrick Emery six points.
Less than 24 hours later, though, F-M went to Chittenango and handed the 10-0 Bears its first defeat of the season, a 58-49 win that combined the routine with the occasionally spectacular.
From the outset, the Hornets controlled the tempo, never letting the Bears run as it wanted, and jumped out 17-7. Chittenango made up ground in the second quarter, only to see Roe sink a three-quarters-court shot at the buzzer to extend F-M’s margin to 34-26 at the break.
All through the second half, the Hornets effectively turned back Chittenango while, on the other end, Roe worked his total to 23 points and Davidson got 21 points. Danaher added seven points as F-M improved to 7-3 overall.
Two years, and 34 consecutive victories, had given Christian Brothers Academy exalted status, but that streak ended Jan. 8 with a loss to Buffalo’s St. Francis.
The question of how CBA would handle this new position was emphatically answered Wednesday night at Auburn when the Brothers, still without Braeden Burns in the lineup, pummeled the Maroons 77-47.
A lopsided first quarter saw CBA jump out to an 18-4 lead. Even as Auburn started hitting shots late in the half, the Brothers kept answering, and an 18-6 jaunt through the third quarter ended any suspense.
What’s more, CBA did this while Dan Anderson got held to nine points. Joe Nicholson’s 14 points included a trio of 3-pointers as Amarri Pitts got 13 points, Alex Smith had 10 points and Tyler Broschart matched Anderson with nine points.
One team that didn’t cool down was Jamesville-DeWitt, who by defeating Oswego 57-47 earned its fifth win in a row following a 1-5 start to the season.
This was a game of extremes. Dominating the first half, the Buccaneers grabbed a 31-12 edge, only to see the Red Rams completely turn it around, outscoring Oswego 21-9 in the third quarter to make up most of the ground.
A 24-7 final period completed J-D’s comeback, Aidan Bates hitting three 3-pointers on his way to 22 points overall as Anthony Stickle picked up 18 points and Brendan Kohberger adding 12 points.
East SyracuseMinoa was 3-5 going into last Thursday’s game at Central Square, and it proved close all the way to the final buzzer before the Spartans lost, 55-54, to the Redhawks.
Down 20-13 after one quarter, ESM chipped away at that margin in the game’s middle stages, led by Andrew Graham, who had 19 points, and Tristan Henderson, who contributed 10 points. Central Square held on in the end thanks to 16 points from Cameron Pownall and 14 points from Trevor Boyce.
In Saturday’s game against Baldwinsville, the Spartans rebounded to top the Bees 66-57, using a 20-11 burst in the third quarter to erase a 34-27 halftime deficit before pulling away late as Henderson picked up 21 points, Aiden Betts had 17 points and Jusmin Kaikan got 12 points.
Manlius-Pebble Hill was 3-5 following last Wednesday’s narrow 46-45 victory over Cato-Meridian, featuring James Wildhack getting 22 points and 18 reobunds as Miguel Gonzalez got 10 points and 10 rebounds.
Two nights later, the Trojans lost, 59-41, to perennial contender Weedsport, who built a 51-26 lead through three quarters. Gonzalez, with 15 points, was the lone MPH player to score in double figures.
