CENTRAL NEW YORK – Though the venues changed, the point of the annual Peppino’s Invitational was the same – to draw many of the top teams in Section III boys basketball for an early-season showcase.
This included West Genesee, Bishop Ludden and Westhill, all of whom would make their way to this weekend showcase in three separate games.
Still hungry after its narrow defeat to Liverpool in last March’s Section III Class AA title game, West Genesee opened last Friday against Jamesville-DeWitt and demonstrated, for all to see, that it has the capabililty to win a title this time.
The Wildcats’ 77-51 victory saw it never trail once, the game opening with a 21-9 push fueled mostly by defense and turnovers that led to transition baskets.
When the Red Rams fought back and closed the gap to single digits in the third quarter, WG countered with bench production from the duo of Sincere Smith and Joe Cavallo, who helped put the game away.
Smith, with 13 points, and Cavallo, with 11 points, gave ample support to Christian Cain, who took game MVP honors with 25 points as Christian Amica chimed in with 14 points.
Bishop Ludden, meanwhile, had its opener against Henninger, where, similar to the West Genesee game, a quick start by one side could not be overcome by the other as the Gaelic Knights took a 53-45 defeat.
All through the first half, Ludden struggled to deal with the Black Knights’ pressure and could not hit a single 3-pointer, either, which led to a double-digit deficit.
Then, in the third quarter, the Gaelic Knights put together a 12-4 run to climb back in the game. And it got within four, 42-38, early in the final period, but could not quite catch up.
Joe Dunham and freshman Jahzar Greene led Ludden with 13 points apiece, while Tim Dunham added 10 points. Ja’Quair Lewis paced Henninger with 19 points.
Westhill took on a Baldwinsville team now under the direction of former Le Moyne College coach Patrick Beilein and, moving to 3-0 in a four-day span, defeated the Bees 67-52.
Jumping out to a 21-10 advantage by the end of the first quarter, the Warriors never got caught, due in no small part to a balanced, three-pronged attack. Luke Gilmartin had 19 points, with Kam Langdon getting 18 points and Shawn Mayes adding 17 points.
This followed impressive back-to-back victories to open the season. In last Wednesday’s game against Syracuse Academy of Science, where Westhill displayed a deep, well-balanced attack in a 75-54 victory over the Atoms.
Already in front 19-13, the Warriors outscored SAS 22-6 in the second quarter, all but putting the game away led by Mayes, whose 23 points included four 3-pointers.
Four Westhill players hit double figures as, behind Mayes, Langdon earned 15 points, with Gilmartin adding 12 points and Omar Robinson earning 11 points.
Following this up on Friday, Westhill routed Solvay 69-26. All 11 Warriors players that saw action got at least one point as Gilmartin, with 16 points, and Mayes, with 15 points, led the way.
Langdon and Charles DeMore had eight points apiece and Robinson got seven points, the same number as the Bearcats’ top scorer, Ikeem Vaughn, who beat out Nick Commisso’s total of six points.
