CENTRAL NEW YORK – Whether it was West Genesee in Class AA, Westhill in Class AA or Bishop Ludden in Class AAA, each of the area’s large-school Section III boys basketball playoff brackets features a local side capable of winning titles.
For the Wildcats, winning it all in Class AA would help ease the pain of back-to-back sectional finals losses to Liverpool each of the last two seasons and evoke memories of its 2019 state championship run.
One more impressive victory was notched Thursday night when, hosting Baldwinsville, it was challenged and tailed from the opening tip but still managed to defeat the Bees 66-57.
It was Senior Night for eight WG players that includes its entire starting five – Jordan Cain, Gary McLane, Jalen Zachery, Sincere Smith and Joe Cavallo – and all of them had to work hard to keep it a happy occasion.
With an improving offense to go with an already solid defense, B’ville mostly matched baskets with the Wildcats throughout the first half, then kept doing so in the third quarter as WG went to the final frame clinging to a 49-45 advantage.
But like so many other times this winter, the Wildcats were able to play well down the stretch, adding to its margin and ultimately producing its 15th win in a row.
Cain paced WG, pouring in a game-high 27 points to go with five rebounds, four assists and two blocks, helped by 14 points from McLane and 13 points from Smith as Cavallo finished with six points.
M.J. Young led the Bees with 22 points, four steals and two rebounds. Tyler Nilsen had 18 points and eight rebounds, with Nick Hollingshead adding 10 points.
Westhill, of course, won the state Class B title a season ago but is now in Class A where, having moved to no. 14 in the state Class A rankings, it enters the playoffs with an 11-game win streak.
The Warriors concluded its regular season at 18-2, prevailing again last Tuesday when it toppled Christian Brothers Academy 62-52. Westhill built a 30-20 advantage by halftime, then fended off all of CBA’s late-game pushes as Kam Langdon gained 20 points, Eli Prince had 18 points and Jackson Goodness came off the bench to earn 11 points.
All of this propelled Westhill to the top seed in Class A. Next Friday night at 6 p.m., it will meet the winner of Tuesday’s opening-round game between no. 8 seed Carthage and no. 9 seed South Jefferson in the sectional quarterfinals.
This happens as, over in Camillus, West Genesee, as the top seed in Class AA, gets its own quarterfinal at 7 p.m. against a first-round winner, whether it’s no. 8 seed Watertown or no. 9 seed Corcoran.
And in Class AAA, Bishop Ludden, well-rested, takes its no. 5 seed east to face no. 4 seed Utica Proctor in the quarterfinals, with the winner likely to deal with top seed Liverpool in the Feb. 28 semifinal at Fayetteville-Manlius.
