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H.S. Boys Basketball: North Collins gets lift from play in loss
Thursday February 16, 2012 | By:Michael J. Petro
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- Western New York scoring leader Jared Keppel drives to the basket during a 31-point performance in a recent loss to Panama during North Collins' Senior Night. (Photo by Michael J. Petro)
Western New York scoring leader Jared Keppel drives to the basket during a 31-point performance in a recent loss to Panama during North Collins' Senior Night. (Photo by Michael J. Petro)
Lake Shore upsets Iroquois; Hamburg with big fourth quarter against East; St. Francis bests Nichols
Panama was the one team this season to make North Collins go back to the drawing board. But nearly a month after their worse loss of the season, a 39-point drubbing from Panama, the Eagles made a case for why they won’t be an easy out in the postseason for the likes of Class D’s top teams.
North Collins fought back from several large deficits, getting to within four points with three minutes left in the game, before succumbing on its Senior Night to Panama 73-64 on Feb. 10. On a night in which the basketball program and cheerleaders raised money for the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation, the Eagles also raised hopes for their playoff prospects.
“We’re getting closer,” said Eagles first-year head coach Rob Catalino, whose team fell to 10-7 overall and 5-6 in CCAA Division IV play. “We’ve still got to get one of those signature wins. When you want to get one of them is at sectionals. I think we’re making it so that non of the top teams want to see us.”
North Collins junior Jared Keppel is certainly making it so that no opponent wants to see him. The 6-foot-1 forward exceeded his over 24 point average, which leads all of Western New York this season, scoring nearly at will in a 31-point effort, which included getting his team to within 39-36 at the intermission with 22 first half points.
In the second half, the second-year varsity starter was slowed a bit by the defense of his star counterpart Nick Lenart of Panama, who finished with a team-high 22 points, and left the game for a few minutes after contact to his head in the fourth.
“Jared always gives 100 percent and battles all night,” Catalino said of Keppel, who has racked up 411 points this season and should threaten the career 1,000-point mark next year. “To score 31 against one of the best teams in the division says a lot. He’s a real hard worker.”
In their final regular season home games, point guard Kyle Sherman recorded 11 points and forward Trey Bley added nine. Junior Todd Youngman, who’s been nursing a sore hip, finished with seven, including landing a three-pointer to cut Panama’s lead to 64-60 late in the fourth. Panama had run off the first 16 of 18 points in the third quarter.
But as was the case earlier in the first half and during that third quarter lapse, the Eagles could get no closer in the game’s final minutes as they turned the ball over at some inopportune times and allowed too many second and third opportunities for Panama’s offense.
“We kept battling but what happened is we had a couple of four minute lapses where we ran out of gas,” Catalino said. “You get back and get back and that takes a lot out of you...What our guys have to understand is that when you stop their top guys, you can’t allow them extra shots. We’ve got to box out better.”
The crowd filled up the small gymnasium at North Collins as the community showed support for the fundraiser and big game. “The atmosphere was fantastic, “Catalino noted. “This is what I envision in a small town community.”
The Eagles close the regular season against Sherman (Feb. 14), which is still competing with Clymer and Panama for the top three seeds in Class D. North Collins will meet Pine Valley in the opening round of the playoffs with home court still yet to be determined for the potential four against five seed game.
The seeding meeting for the Section VI Tournament will be held Saturday (Feb. 18) with postseason action getting underway with opening round games on Wednesday, Feb. 22.
Lake Shore sophomores spoil Iroquois Sr. Night
Lake Shore turned Senior Night at Iroquois into its own “Sophomore Night” as Wade Bergum and Tyler Mascio led Lake Shore to an impressive 82-77 victory over the disappointed hosts on Feb. 9. The win was Lake Shore’s third in the past four games.
Bergum got the Eagles off to a quick start with 13 points in the first quarter en route to a season-high 25 points, eight assists and seven rebounds. Mascio picked up where his teammate left off as he netted 12 of his 21 points in the second quarter to lead the Eagles into the locker room at the half with a 48-43 lead.
After the Eagles stumbled a bit in the third quarter, Bergum and Mascio scored 15 of the team’s 18 points in the fourth stanza, while helping hold Iroquois to just seven points. Bergum was 5 for 5 from the free throw line in that final period, securing the victory with two clutch free throws with 8.3 seconds left to make it a two possession game.
“Wade set the tone for us with a great start,” Lake Shore head coach Dan Gerken said of Bergum, who got off to a slow start this winter due to an ankle sprain suffered toward the end of the soccer season. “He played with confidence and poise beyond his years. He has kept working to get better since returning and we are happy to see him playing at this level.”
Juniors Ryan Joslyn and Nick Winters joined the team’s lone senior Ryan Spears in soundly defending the much bigger Iroquois front court. Joslyn tossed in nine points, Spears, seven, and Winters, six, despite feeling under the weather. Junior Clark Brueckl suffered a leg injury, but contributed six points, while fellow junior Connor Govenettio chipped in four, while adding six rebounds and three steals in the deciding quarter.
The Eagles, who played host to division rival Williamsville South on Feb. 15 in their regular season finale, improved to 5-12 overall and 4-7 in ECIC II. Lake Shore is still alive for the eighth seed and a home game in the upcoming Class A-1 playoffs.
Hamburg ends losing streak with big fourth
Hamburg avoided a third straight defeat to a fellow ECIC II foe by going on a 24-6 run to end a 56-43 win over West Seneca East on Feb. 9. In improving to 9-7 overall and 7-4 in the division, Hamburg has all but clinched a first home playoff game in four seasons and still remains in contention for a first round playoff bye, which will go to the first four seeds in Class A-1.
Down 37-33 early in the fourth, Hamburg sophomore Griffin Ryan scored 12 of his 14 points in the final quarter and senor Nick Benningfield, who finished with 10, added a few good finishes and solid passes to Ryan down the stretch. Senior forward Eric Moscato stepped up with 21 points, shooting 8 of 11 from the field, and eight rebounds and junior Kyle Violanti contributed five points and six steals. Ryan also had eight rebounds.
“After East scored the first two points of the fourth quarter to go up four, we finally started running and played the way we wanted to,” Hamburg head coach Tim Brueckl said.
Brueckl was also happy to see some other players step up after his team lacked some offensive punch in losing 54-44 to Williamsville South two days earlier. Hamburg cut South’s lead to 39-38 early in the fourth then to four points at 46-42 with two minutes left, but could come up with only two more points down the stretch.
Benningfield led the Bulldogs with 14 points and Moscato did as well with his 18 rebounds. Also for Hamburg, Violanti added eight points and five assists, Ryan, 11 rebounds, and Andrew Sardinia, five points and 11 rebounds.
“They did a god job on us defensively, and we did, too, on them, but struggled offensively,” said Brueckl, whose team also lost the game prior, 65-58 to Iroquois, on Jan. 31. “I told our guys that we did something right with our defensive effort. They took Benningfield out of the game. We need other guys to step a little.”
St. Francis rallies to beat Nichols in MMAA
St. Francis would need a big fourth quarter rally to get back into the win column while playing a rigorous Monsignor Martin schedule. The Red Raiders got that in beating Nichols 56-45 on Feb. 10 as they used an 18-4 fourth quarter to break a four-game skid.
Trailing 31-25 at halftime and 41-30 after three, St. Francis received 13 points and 12 rebounds from sophomore junior varsity call-up Dave Kennedy to propel it to the win against a taller but young Nichols squad. With the help of some second half adjustments to Nichols box-and-one and triangle-and-two defenses, guards Tyler Wagner and Cory Cullen were able to net 15 and 12 points, respectively. Wagner added seven assists. The Red Raiders also made a season-high eight three-pointers and nailed 10 of 12 free throws.
“Nichols' gimmick defense helped open holes for Kennedy and (from behind the arc),” said St. Francis head coach Ed Hoak, whose team improved to 10-12 overall and 2-7 in MMAA action. Playoffs are slated to begin either Thursday, Feb. 23 or Friday, Feb. 24 with the Red Raiders expected to be a seventh seed in the nine-team draw.
In the game prior, St. Francis had no answer for Kyle Kobis, who finished with 24 points, including scoring his 1,000-career point, in a 62-42 loss to Timon-St. Jude on Feb. 7. Cullen and Brendan Macey led the Red Raiders with 10 points each, while Wagner added eight.
Panama was the one team this season to make North Collins go back to the drawing board. But nearly a month after their worse loss of the season, a 39-point drubbing from Panama, the Eagles made a case for why they won’t be an easy out in the postseason for the likes of Class D’s top teams.
North Collins fought back from several large deficits, getting to within four points with three minutes left in the game, before succumbing on its Senior Night to Panama 73-64 on Feb. 10. On a night in which the basketball program and cheerleaders raised money for the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation, the Eagles also raised hopes for their playoff prospects.
“We’re getting closer,” said Eagles first-year head coach Rob Catalino, whose team fell to 10-7 overall and 5-6 in CCAA Division IV play. “We’ve still got to get one of those signature wins. When you want to get one of them is at sectionals. I think we’re making it so that non of the top teams want to see us.”
North Collins junior Jared Keppel is certainly making it so that no opponent wants to see him. The 6-foot-1 forward exceeded his over 24 point average, which leads all of Western New York this season, scoring nearly at will in a 31-point effort, which included getting his team to within 39-36 at the intermission with 22 first half points.
In the second half, the second-year varsity starter was slowed a bit by the defense of his star counterpart Nick Lenart of Panama, who finished with a team-high 22 points, and left the game for a few minutes after contact to his head in the fourth.
“Jared always gives 100 percent and battles all night,” Catalino said of Keppel, who has racked up 411 points this season and should threaten the career 1,000-point mark next year. “To score 31 against one of the best teams in the division says a lot. He’s a real hard worker.”
In their final regular season home games, point guard Kyle Sherman recorded 11 points and forward Trey Bley added nine. Junior Todd Youngman, who’s been nursing a sore hip, finished with seven, including landing a three-pointer to cut Panama’s lead to 64-60 late in the fourth. Panama had run off the first 16 of 18 points in the third quarter.
But as was the case earlier in the first half and during that third quarter lapse, the Eagles could get no closer in the game’s final minutes as they turned the ball over at some inopportune times and allowed too many second and third opportunities for Panama’s offense.
“We kept battling but what happened is we had a couple of four minute lapses where we ran out of gas,” Catalino said. “You get back and get back and that takes a lot out of you...What our guys have to understand is that when you stop their top guys, you can’t allow them extra shots. We’ve got to box out better.”
The crowd filled up the small gymnasium at North Collins as the community showed support for the fundraiser and big game. “The atmosphere was fantastic, “Catalino noted. “This is what I envision in a small town community.”
The Eagles close the regular season against Sherman (Feb. 14), which is still competing with Clymer and Panama for the top three seeds in Class D. North Collins will meet Pine Valley in the opening round of the playoffs with home court still yet to be determined for the potential four against five seed game.
The seeding meeting for the Section VI Tournament will be held Saturday (Feb. 18) with postseason action getting underway with opening round games on Wednesday, Feb. 22.
Lake Shore sophomores spoil Iroquois Sr. Night
Lake Shore turned Senior Night at Iroquois into its own “Sophomore Night” as Wade Bergum and Tyler Mascio led Lake Shore to an impressive 82-77 victory over the disappointed hosts on Feb. 9. The win was Lake Shore’s third in the past four games.
Bergum got the Eagles off to a quick start with 13 points in the first quarter en route to a season-high 25 points, eight assists and seven rebounds. Mascio picked up where his teammate left off as he netted 12 of his 21 points in the second quarter to lead the Eagles into the locker room at the half with a 48-43 lead.
After the Eagles stumbled a bit in the third quarter, Bergum and Mascio scored 15 of the team’s 18 points in the fourth stanza, while helping hold Iroquois to just seven points. Bergum was 5 for 5 from the free throw line in that final period, securing the victory with two clutch free throws with 8.3 seconds left to make it a two possession game.
“Wade set the tone for us with a great start,” Lake Shore head coach Dan Gerken said of Bergum, who got off to a slow start this winter due to an ankle sprain suffered toward the end of the soccer season. “He played with confidence and poise beyond his years. He has kept working to get better since returning and we are happy to see him playing at this level.”
Juniors Ryan Joslyn and Nick Winters joined the team’s lone senior Ryan Spears in soundly defending the much bigger Iroquois front court. Joslyn tossed in nine points, Spears, seven, and Winters, six, despite feeling under the weather. Junior Clark Brueckl suffered a leg injury, but contributed six points, while fellow junior Connor Govenettio chipped in four, while adding six rebounds and three steals in the deciding quarter.
The Eagles, who played host to division rival Williamsville South on Feb. 15 in their regular season finale, improved to 5-12 overall and 4-7 in ECIC II. Lake Shore is still alive for the eighth seed and a home game in the upcoming Class A-1 playoffs.
Hamburg ends losing streak with big fourth
Hamburg avoided a third straight defeat to a fellow ECIC II foe by going on a 24-6 run to end a 56-43 win over West Seneca East on Feb. 9. In improving to 9-7 overall and 7-4 in the division, Hamburg has all but clinched a first home playoff game in four seasons and still remains in contention for a first round playoff bye, which will go to the first four seeds in Class A-1.
Down 37-33 early in the fourth, Hamburg sophomore Griffin Ryan scored 12 of his 14 points in the final quarter and senor Nick Benningfield, who finished with 10, added a few good finishes and solid passes to Ryan down the stretch. Senior forward Eric Moscato stepped up with 21 points, shooting 8 of 11 from the field, and eight rebounds and junior Kyle Violanti contributed five points and six steals. Ryan also had eight rebounds.
“After East scored the first two points of the fourth quarter to go up four, we finally started running and played the way we wanted to,” Hamburg head coach Tim Brueckl said.
Brueckl was also happy to see some other players step up after his team lacked some offensive punch in losing 54-44 to Williamsville South two days earlier. Hamburg cut South’s lead to 39-38 early in the fourth then to four points at 46-42 with two minutes left, but could come up with only two more points down the stretch.
Benningfield led the Bulldogs with 14 points and Moscato did as well with his 18 rebounds. Also for Hamburg, Violanti added eight points and five assists, Ryan, 11 rebounds, and Andrew Sardinia, five points and 11 rebounds.
“They did a god job on us defensively, and we did, too, on them, but struggled offensively,” said Brueckl, whose team also lost the game prior, 65-58 to Iroquois, on Jan. 31. “I told our guys that we did something right with our defensive effort. They took Benningfield out of the game. We need other guys to step a little.”
St. Francis rallies to beat Nichols in MMAA
St. Francis would need a big fourth quarter rally to get back into the win column while playing a rigorous Monsignor Martin schedule. The Red Raiders got that in beating Nichols 56-45 on Feb. 10 as they used an 18-4 fourth quarter to break a four-game skid.
Trailing 31-25 at halftime and 41-30 after three, St. Francis received 13 points and 12 rebounds from sophomore junior varsity call-up Dave Kennedy to propel it to the win against a taller but young Nichols squad. With the help of some second half adjustments to Nichols box-and-one and triangle-and-two defenses, guards Tyler Wagner and Cory Cullen were able to net 15 and 12 points, respectively. Wagner added seven assists. The Red Raiders also made a season-high eight three-pointers and nailed 10 of 12 free throws.
“Nichols' gimmick defense helped open holes for Kennedy and (from behind the arc),” said St. Francis head coach Ed Hoak, whose team improved to 10-12 overall and 2-7 in MMAA action. Playoffs are slated to begin either Thursday, Feb. 23 or Friday, Feb. 24 with the Red Raiders expected to be a seventh seed in the nine-team draw.
In the game prior, St. Francis had no answer for Kyle Kobis, who finished with 24 points, including scoring his 1,000-career point, in a 62-42 loss to Timon-St. Jude on Feb. 7. Cullen and Brendan Macey led the Red Raiders with 10 points each, while Wagner added eight.
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