CENTRAL NEW YORK – It’s doubtful Skaneateles boys basketball sophomore Reid Danforth ever had a night similar to what he experienced Friday at PSLA-Fowler , and the odds of its happening again are quite long.
Still, for one game Danforth outplayed, out-shot and outclassed every other player in Central New York with an astonishing 51 points that helped the Lakers defeat the Falcons 95-85.
Danforth had scored 18 or more points in each of the Lakers’ first 12 games, peaking with 34 in a win over Phoenix in December, but he had just six points when Skaneateles beat Onondaga 80-49 earlier in the week.
Against Fowler, the magic began with a 17-point first quarter that pushed Skaneateles to a 27-19 lead. Then Danforth added 12 more in the second period and Skaneateles, feeding off this effort, extended its margin to 50-40 by the break.
As the second half wore on, anything Fowler tried on Danforth did not work, as he passed the 40-point mark early in the final period and then, toward the end, crossed the rare 50-point barrier.
This wasn’t a case of taking lots of shots, either. Of the 21 shots Danforth took from the field, 17 were converted, 11-of-13 inside the arc and six-for-eight from 3-point land. To top it off, Danforth took 11 free throws and made them all.
And his teammates were not complete spectators. There was Carter Loi hitting 15 points, four rebounds, six assists and three steals, with Charlie Girzadas getting 13 points and eight rebounds and Jack Peenstra (10 points) also getting to double figures.
Before all this, Skaneateles handled Onondaga, outscoring the Tigers 46-23 over the course of the second and third quarters, with Girzadas getting 20 points and 12 rebounds. Loi had 14 points, with Tyler Dell adding 11 points.
Having chased other powerful programs the last few years, Marcellus has adjusted quite well to its new role as the one everyone wants to beat.
Still atop the state Class B rankings, the Mustangs hosted Solvay last Tuesday night and bashed the Bearcats 79-38, dominating on both ends in a first half where it established a 48-13 advantage.
Will Burnett, with 20 points, and Will Kershaw, with 13 points, each hit on three 3-pointers. Mitch Donegan also had 13 points as Tucker Burnett earned 11 ponts and Dom Gosh-Sandy 11 points. For Solvay, Aiyden Geigel lead with 15 points, while Chris Nichols had nine points, Landon Raymond eight points and Luis Mojica six points.
Then Marcellus turned its attention to Jordan-Elbridge on Friday and promptly built a 49-18 halftime lead before cruising home, its score of 79-39 nearly identical to the Solvay result.
Donegan hit on six 3-pointers to account for most of his 20 points as Will Burnett had 14 points and Tucker Burnett 10 points. Nolan Brunelle led J-E with 17 points as Preston Murray got 11 points.
Rebounding from its loss to Marcellus, Solvay beat Phoenix 64-60 on Friday, rallying from an early 16-6 deficit by tying it over the course of the next two periods and then outscoring the Firebirds 19-15 in the final period to break that 45-45 tie.
Mojica earned seven of his 13 points at the free-throw line. Jairo DeJesus got 12 points, with Geigel adding 10 points. Jeff Sharpe added nine points as Solvay overcame 21 points from Phoenix’s Tallen Prior.
J-E had gone through plenty of ups and downs this winter, but helped by a career-best performance from Brunelle, the Eagles prevailed 76-69 over Port Byron last Monday to move to 8-6 on the season.
Whatever the Panthers tried on defense didn’t work on Brunelle, who hit on seven 3-pointers, added nine free throws and finished with 34 points, nearly half the Eagles’ total.
Murray lit it up, too, finishing with 25 points as he and Logan Vincent both hit on a pair of 3-pointers. All this helped J-E build a 42-33 lead by halftime and then maintain it the rest of the way.
Just as quickly, though, the Eagles went back down again two nights later, falling 62-38 to Cazenovia as an early 12-9 lead quickly vanished in the face of a relentless Lakers defense.
Not scoring more than nine points in any of the last three quarters, J-E saw Brunelle held to 10 points. Murray led with 13 points, but trailed Cazenovia’s Ben Bianco, who led all scorers with 21 points as Edmond Richardson added 15 points.
