GLENS FALLS – Through a winter full of milestones, the Marcellus boys basketball team wanted to attain the most important milestone of all, that of a first-ever state Class B championship.
At the last step, though, the Mustangs were denied, Section II’s Stillwater defeating them 59-50 in last Friday’s state final at Glens Falls’ Cool Insuring Arena with a midgame surge that Marcellus just could not overcome.
Getting to the championship game was simple enough. Marcellus faced Section VI champion Salamanca in Thursday night’s state semifinal and, again excelling in all phases of the game, cruised to a 70-48 victory.
It all started with defense. The Mustangs limited Salamanca to just one field goal in the game’s first 6 ½ minutes while sprinting to an 11-3 lead.
All told, Salamanca hit on just seven of 24 shots in the first half and were shut out from beyond the 3-point line. Also, the Mustangs outrebounded them by a 22-12 margin.
On the other end, smooth ball movement led to many easy baskets inside. Will Kershaw (11 points) and Dom Gosh-Sandy (eight points) both were productive, and a 6-0 surge in the final 90 seconds of the second quarter produced a 33-16 halftime advantage.
It didn’t change much in the third quarter, except that Marcellus stretched the margin to 55-28 and, with the game secure, rested its starters for most of the fourth quarter.
Will Burnett’s double-double of 15 points and 11 rebounds was complemented by Kershaw’s 16 points and nine rebounds as Dom Gosh-Sandy put up 10 points and five rebounds.
Tucker Burnett’s sensational post-season run continued with eight assists to go with seven points as Mitch Donegan finished with eight points. As a whole, Marcellus shot 30-for-52 and out-rebounded Salamanca 39-23.
Stillwater had used a 20-2 run in the fourth quarter to rally and beat Woodlands 64-53 in the other state semifinal, and it would employ a similar outburst in the championship game at the Mustangs’ expense.
Neither team shot well at the outset, Tied 10-10 after one period, the Mustangs got seven points off its bench from Gosh-Sandy and Connor Ciota and built a 23-17 lead midway through the second quarter.
Then it all changed.
Dominating the boards on one end and converting in all kinds of ways on the other end, Stillwater stunned the Mustangs with a 16-0 run to close the half, six different players hitting on everything from driving layups to a pair of 3-pointers.
Trailing 33-23 at the break and held to nine-for-26 shooting, Marcellus had to respond to the kind of situation it had rarely encountered while building a 25-1 mark and sitting atop the state Class B rankings since December.
Stillwater’s run swelled to 19-0 and the Mustangs’ drought to more than six minutes before it finally broke, Marcellus able to get back to single digits and stay within range, 43-34, when the final period got underway.
Through sheer hustle and determination, Marcellus chipped away, finally hitting some outside shots and getting within four, 54-50, on Will Burnett’s 3-pointer with 1:51 left just after Tucker Burnett had fouled out.
But the Mustangs were blanked the rest of the way as Stillwater hit five of six free throws in the final minute, delighting a large fan contingent from the school located less than an hour from Glens Falls.
Will Burnett finished with 15 points and Donegan had 14 points. Kershaw, despite 10 rebounds, was held to five points. Lucas Lilac led Stillwater with 21 points, Kaelan Leak adding 12 points as Jaxon Mueller had nine points and 10 rebounds.
So the best of all Marcellus basketball seasons ended at 25-2, with Kershaw, Will Burnett and Codey Kociela (who had seven points in the state final) all graduating, but the likes of Donegan, Gosh-Sandy, Ciota and Tucker Burnett slated to come back in 2024-25 and try to take it all the way.
