One of the benefits of notoriety gained by the Marcellus boys basketball team during its run to last March’s state Class B championship game was a chance to play high-level competition.
The Mustangs seized one of these opportunities last weekend traveling to the Capital District for back-to-back games against large-school Section II competition.
Marcellus started with a setback, falling to Shenendehowa 69-59 at Troy’s Hudson Valley Community College in a game where it led early, but surrendered it when Shen outscored them 25-13 in the second quarter.
Despite settling down in the second half the Mustangs could not catch up. Mitch Donegan and Tucker Burnett each finished with 17 points, followed closely by Dom Gosh-Sandy’s 13 points.
Recovering a day later at the University at Albany, Marcellus defeated Bethlehem 73-59, bolting out to a 22-13 edge through one period with hot early shooting and spending the rest of the game protecting that margin.
Between them, Donegan and Connor Ciota hit seven 3-pointers, Donegan earning 22 points and Ciota improving to 19 points after having just five against Shen. Most of Burnett’s nine points and Gosh-Sandy’s seven points came from the free-throw line.
Marcellus then had its home opener Tuesday against Phoenix as the state Class B no. 7-ranked Mustangs nearly got to the century mark while beating the Firebirds 95-49.
Phoenix was close until the Mustangs outscored them 27-7 in the second quarter. Twelve different players hit baskets led by Donegan earning 21 points as Burnett and Gosh-Sandy got 14 points apiece. Caleb Meyer and Jacob Meyer each had eight points.
Skaneateles met Jordan-Elbridge Wednesday night and it was the Lakers prevailing 69-55 over the Eagles, who were no. 13 in last week’s state Class B rankings and suffered its first defeat of the season.
A 16-8 push through the second quarter put Skaneateles in control, which it maintained the rest of the way led by Finlay Coyne’s 21 points and Reid Danforth’s double-double of 16 points and 12 rebounds.
Jack Peenstra chimed in with 14 points, and nine rebounds, with Joe Delmonico getting nine points and 10 rebounds. On J-E’s side Nolan Brunelle had a game-high 22 points, with Preston Murray adding 16 points and Lewis Vincent earning nine points.
West Genesee had streaked to a 3-0 start, only to get halted in a big way last Tuesday night by another undefeated side when it lost at home to Cicero-North Syracuse 67-51.
Defensively it started well, the Wildcats keeping the Northstars off the board for more than three minutes, but once Andrew Benedict got going WG found it impossible to contain him.
In fact, Benedict had more points (18) in the first half than the Wildcats (17), something WG tried to correct with a surge early in the third quarter with an 8-2 push, but it never got closer than seven, 32-25.
Benedict helped C-NS pull away for good and would finish with 31 points, helped by Nate Francis, who got 18 points, and Andrew Potter, who had 11 points. Aidan Phelan paced the Wildcats with 18 points, Kolton Castrello adding 15 points.
Westhill followed up a high-quality win over Liverpool on Dec. 13 by hammering Chittenango 72-36 in last Monday night’s action. A 19-8 second-quarter surge began the getaway from the Bears, who saw its best player, Ryan Moesch, leave for prep school in the off-season.
Eli Prince had 16 points and eight rebounds, with Eli Welch getting a double-double of 10 points and 10 rebounds as Jackson Goodness earned 12 points and six rebounds. Trevor Young and Colin Shiel had eight points apiece.
Sitting at no. 10 in the state Class A rankings Westhill then beat Syracuse Academy of Science 68-44 on Wednesday with Prince again breaking out, especially during a 26-9 third-quarter surge that put the game away.
With 35 points Prince accounted for more than half of Westhill’s production. Yet he didn’t work alone, since Young hit a trio of 3-pointers on his way to 11 points and Goodness contributed 10 points.
