Source: https://www.theviewfromcentercourt.com/section-v/
Timestamp: 2019-04-22 02:36:04+00:00

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Was there ever even a question? The game that Falls' fans have been waiting for since the summer has almost arrived!
For the first time in a very long time, two of WNY's top five large schools hail from Niagara County. While Niagara Falls has won three consecutive Section VI titles in Class AA and always occupies an annual spot near the top of the large school rankings, Lew-Port is one of the smallest large schools in the area and hasn't won a sectional title since 1978. But the most significant transfer in my time covering hoops just might change that.
After averaging over 12 points per game as an eighth grader for Niagara Falls and helping lead the team to the Class AA Regional, Roddy Gayle transferred to Lew-Port over the summer. Now a freshman sensation in WNY high school basketball, Gayle has teamed with some very talented players who were already at Lew-Port. Trent Scott earned All-Centercourt Honorable Mention as a junior last season for the Lancers, eighth grader Jalen Duff has played like a veteran in the back court, and senior Zach Claybourne has been very productive for the team.
Gayle's departure would have left Falls with just one young prodigy in Willie Lightfoot, who also starred as an eighth grader at NFHS -- except for the return home by a third young prodigy from Niagara Falls.
When Niagara Catholic closed it's doors, 2018 Third Team All-Centercourt pick and Manhattan Cup MVP Jalen Bradberry returned to his home school. Bradberry has teamed with Lightfoot, along with seniors Josiah Harris & Moran Montgomery, to make this version of Falls an exciting brand of basketball that features shooting, speed, & pressure. The Wolverines are capable of overwhelming opponents when they start turning teams over, then running & scoring in transition.
The Wolverines and the Lancers are currently tied for first place in the NFL, both undefeated in league play. Lew-Port is also one of just three teams in WNY with an overall record that's unblemished, sitting at 11-0. Both teams are averaging 82 points per game (11 points above the next highest scoring Section VI team), with Falls allowing 53 points per game and the Lancers giving up 57 per outing.
While Gayle, Bradberry, and Lightfoot were supposed to be the next big thing together at Niagara Falls, instead we have something else to look forward to. There's a lot of pride among these three friends and both teams are ready to make a statement. Whatever happens Friday night, it's going to be awesome! It's the 'Game of the Week' - Cataract City-style!
- The news in Class AA is even more bleak than last week. Section V now has four teams ranked from the state's highest classification: Fairport, Aquinas, UPrep, & Bishop Kearney. Three of those teams have losses to our teams. Aquinas fell to Canisius, UPrep lost at Falls, and Bishop Kearney lost at Timon. However, I still can't bring myself to disagree with this. The team from Section VI that warrants the most consideration for a ranking is Niagara Falls. But the top results supporting the Wolverines being ranked happened at home to start the season - taking Park to OT and beating UPrep. Since then, they lost the rematch to UPrep, lost to Rochester East, and lost at NT.
- Park is your new CHSAA state champion, thanks to Cathedral Prep. Canisius made the trip to Erie, PA and lost to the Ramblers, which dropped them to #3 behind Park. For some reason, Byram Hills jumped Park and landed at #1 in NYS Class A, so I must assume they will knock the Pioneers off in the Federation Tournament.
- Williamsville South loses in the Class A state semifinal to Elmont. The Billies are ranked 3rd among public schools in NYS and are presently projected to face the defending state champions, who are coached by a man with a serious beard.
- Timon remained #23 in NYS Class A despite its loss to Williamsville South. I applaud the decision to not drop the Tigers, who are a top 25 team in Class A all day.
- St. Francis is now state ranked! I can't remember ever seeing this in my time on the scene, which dates back to the 2008 season. The Red Raiders deserve it and are more than worthy of their slot right next to Timon.
- Health Sciences takes on Glens Falls (in Binghamton) for the NYSPHAA Class B state championship. Remember, this is not a prediction, but according to the rankings - they are the second highest ranked public school in NYS. I'd love to see the Falcons join me in Binghamton this year. They face Rochester's Early College, ranked #16 in NYS Class B, on Thursday night at Villa Maria College in the I-90 Showcase.
- The weird development of the week in the state rankings occured in the latter portion on the Class B rankings. Dunkirk jumped from #22 to #15. Lackawanna fell from #17 to #21. Dunkirk won one game last week, while Lackawanna won two games. Neither team lost. Hmmm.
- It's Chautauqua Lake vs. Waterville for the NYS Class C state championship. The Thunderbirds are up to #2 in the state. I'm curious to see which approach they take in the Class C crossover against East - attempt to score 122 points or dig in defensively.
- In Class D, Ellicottville & Sherman are battling for the right to lose to Avoca, now #1 in NYS, in the Far West Regional. Still no love for Franklinville in the Class D top 20. I'm telling you, they're good and should be ranked. They have a potential meeting with Chautauqua Lake on Friday if both teams win first round matchups in the IAABO Tournament.
- Did anyone notice how North Tonawanda, who owns wins over Niagara Falls and Health Sciences, got dropped like they were hot from the Class A rankings after losing to Lockport? The Jacks potential matchup at Amherst on Friday would be a fascinating battle of teams with some big strong athletes and battles in the paint for rebounds would not be for the faint of heart.
- This has to be the first time since 2009 that Middle College hasn't cracked the state rankings by now. I know they're now in Class B and I'm not trying to make the case for them. Just found it interesting. Don't count them out, history is on their side.
Click HERE for the complete NYSSWA State Rankings.
- There are now at least three teams fro Section V ahead of Section VI in Class AA. Fairport (9), Aquinas (19), & UPrep (25) are in ranked in NYS Class AA. Niagara Falls has split with UPrep this season, with the loss coming this past weekend.
- Canisius returns to the Class A Fed Final and wins it for a second time in three seasons. The Crusaders are now the number one ranked team in NYS Class A. They moved to #1 due to Albany Academy, the defending Fed champs, losing a pair of out-of-state games. Canisius has started five juniors in their last two wins, so I guess we can go ahead and crown them for next season too. In all seriousness, I don't understand what losing games out-of-state has to do with NYS rankings. No offense intended to the boys from Delaware Avenue, but I suspect they would have gotten the same results as Albany Academy had they played those same two games.
- Williamsville South is now NYS Class A #8 (previously #9), while Timon climbed up two spots to #23. This transpired after a week in which both faced Amherst. South came back from six points down to force OT and take the win. Timon beat Amherst by 19 and trailed for one possession in the first quarter. The Billies travel to South Buffalo on Thursday night to battle Timon. The state's early line has South -8.5.
- St. Francis isn't getting any love on the state level yet. Some advice for the Red Raiders - try flirting with Neil Kerr. Tell him you really like his hair or his sense of style. Everyone likes a compliment...bound to get you the love you deserve.
- Cheektowaga debuted at #14 in NYS Class A last week and then was dropped from the rankings following the loss to Park.
- Four of the top seven teams in NYS Class C are from the Far West Region. East Rochester (#2) & Northstar Christian (#4) from Section V and Chautauqua Lake (#3) & East (#7) from Section VI.
- Silver Creek has quietly improved to 5-0 on the season and sits at #11 in NYS Class C.
- Barker fell three spots in NYS Class C for losing to Lyndonville, an unranked Class D team from Section V. Something has to give here. Either Barker should have fallen harder, or Lyndonville should be ranked in NYS Class D. Lyndonville is 3-1, with two wins over teams in Class B and the third over a state-ranked Class C team on the road (Barker). They lost to Elba, who is 4-0 and also unranked in NYS Class D. The only other working theory could be that Class D is largely considered stronger as a whole than Class C this season.
- Staying on the Class C rankings, I say it's time to throw Randolph a bone. The Cardinals have two losses, to Ellicottville and Franklinville. They also own a recent win over South Park. Even though the Sparks are clearly not the team I thought they were, that's still an impressive win for Randolph. And those two losses are not bad ones - by now, you should all know I'm high on Ellicottville. As for Franklinville...see below.
- Franklinville went from NYS Class D #19 to unranked for losing by three points at Walsh. Dropping a team from Class D rankings for losing to an undefeated Class B team sure sounds like crazy talk to me. I have no doubt that Franklinville will be in the final Class D state rankings this season, so I encourage the panel to come around on them soon. They are good.
For the next three nights, I will set up shop at centercourt from Depew High School to cover the ADPRO Public/Private Challenge. The 10 game showcase is WNY's largest annual high school basketball event, pairing the teams from the Monsignor Martin Association against public schools from various leagues throughout Section VI.
The event was originated by former St. Mary's AD/Coach Kevin Kelleher and ADPRO Senior vice president & former Sweet Home coach Paul Schintzius and started out as the ECIC / MMA Challenge. Since it's inception, the event has grown, now billed as the "Public/Private Challenge" as it expanded past just the ECIC to include teams from all over WNY. St. Mary's hosted the Challenge for years, before Canisius and St. Joe's each took a turn hosting the event. This season will mark the second straight year the event takes place at Depew.
Below is the complete three-day schedule, and as you will notice, it includes multiple games that will impact Large & Small School Poll votes and be talked about for the rest of the season.
- For a second straight season, Section VI Class AA isn't getting much love on the state level. No arguments from me on this one yet. Section V has a pair of teams ranked, Fairport is #13 and Aquinas is #22. Canisius just defeated Aquinas over the weekend. Niagara Falls, who I consider the front runner of our Class AA, faces them on Thursday night at the ADPRO Challenge.
- Canisius & Park are back in a familiar position. They are the top two ranked teams in the CHSAA, meaning the Manhattan Cup winner would also be the favorite to win a catholic state title.
- Williamsville South is favored to emerge as the overall Class A champ for a third straight season, but pegged to drop the regional to Rochester East. When I saw Rochester East as Section V's highest ranked team, I began looking to see where UPrep was ranked. What I discovered was, UPrep has been bumped to Class AA by Section V. Good call!
- The state rankings are high on Cheektowaga, debuting at #14 in the state's Class A. It's rare to see them look past record (1-2), which I'm fine with. The Warriors are at Maryvale this Wednesday. Their big debut sets up an opening for Flyers if they can knock off Cheektowaga like they did in last season's quarterfinals, after starting the season 2-0 and defeating Olean.
- Health Sciences and East Aurora are the two highest ranked teams in the Far West Region. That would mean the Class B crossover game would also be a ticket to Glens Falls...err...Binghamton. (Going to take awhile to train the brain that Glens Falls no longer equals NYSPHAA state championships). Hornell is Section V's highest ranked team in Class B and East Aurora opened its season with a win over them.
- Chautauqua Lake and East are predicted to face off in the overall Class C Final. However, East Rochester of Section V is ranked #2 in Class C, ahead of both teams. History suggests that the Section VI winner beating the Section V winner in Class C is about as sure a thing as Olean advancing to the regional when they are in Class B. The last time Section VI didn't send its Class C sectional champion to the state final four was in 2009. That was so long ago that, to put in perspective, 2009 was the year Kyle Husband won his first Manhattan Cup at Canisius. My apologies to the Bombers of East Rochester, but I like what history is telling me and think Section VI keeps that streak going for at least a couple more years.
- Section VI has three Class D teams ranked in the state. As is always the case, Rochester's highest ranked Class D team is a private school (CG Finney this season). One of my favorite parts of the season is watching our Class D winner knock off what should be a Class B private school team, masquerading as a Class D public school. It makes for a great start to Regional Saturday.
- The Canisius vs. Aquinas, Canisius vs Park, and Park vs. Aquinas games were the type of elite level NYS games we thought they were. Aquinas lost in the Class AA Federation Championship game by just seven points. Canisius defeated the Lil Irish twice, Aquinas beat Park by five, and Canisius needed overtime to move past Park for the Manhattan Cup.
- McKinley took a bit of a snub. With the Macks' only loses coming to Canisius and South (by four), they end up #24 in NYS Class A, behind #17 Amherst, who fell to the Billies by 10. With South, Batavia, & Amherst all bunched together in consecutive slots, McKinley seems a little far down seven spots behind Amherst.
- From the start of the season to the NYSPHAA Class B State Championship game, Fredonia was the only team to lose to Olean by single digits...and they did it all three times they played, including an overtime loss by two. Yet for whatever reason, they end up #12 in NYS Class B, behind the likes of Marlboro & Hudson who the Huskies knocked off by double figures, Bishop Grimes who struggled with Marlboro, and three other teams that didn't even reach Glens Falls. Sorry Neil Kerr, but even if you want to throw a bone to the other three teams that reached Glens Falls in Class B, the next team in line that didn't reach Glens Falls HAD to be Fredonia. You dropped the ball on that one big time. Do your research or listen to the Section VI rep who probably told you the same thing I'm saying!!!
- Championships don't matter to the panel, apparently. Nichols wins the Class B Manhattan Cup and ends up unranked, while Walsh & St. Mary's get in. If it's all about regular season records, don't have a postseason tournament.
- All season long, I mocked the Class C rankings for picking a new flavor of the week, while Middle College struggled to get in and then hovered around the middle of the Class C rankings because of the all-important record. Scoreboard!
- Staying with Class C for a moment, after seeing what was waiting for Middle College at Glens Falls and coming from WNY, we had it going on in Class C. Teams like Silver Creek, Chautauqua Lake, East, Tapestry, Randolph, and Portville are all deserving of being in the top 20 and could have competed in that state tournament.
- Panama finished at #3 in Class D, which is right where I would have had them also. Excellent season for the Panthers and the best in program history.
For complete state rankings, click here.
- Section V now has four teams ranked in Class AA, after Bishop Kearney entered the top 25. Canisius, Park, Amherst, & Timon all beat the Kings this season, while Niagara Falls, St. Joe's, & East all fell to Kearney.
- In NYS Class A, WNY has five of the top 14 teams. After Greece Athena, Section VI now has the next three public schools, meaning the top four public schools in NYS all hail from the Far West Region. Whichever team emerges from our Class A will face Greece Athena at Buff State in the 'de facto' NYSPHAA State championship. The winner gets Canisius in the Federation Championship. Remember, this is according to the rankings.
- Section V has the top two teams ranked in NYS Class C. That means the sectional championship between them (Northstar Christian & East Rochester) would also be a de facto state championship. That is until they get to the regional at Buff State to find Middle College waiting for them, where the Kats will extend Section VI's winning streak in the Class C regional to seven years. According to Neil Kerr, even a state championship would only get Middle College's record to 20-7 and he would still think Northstar Christian was better because of its stellar 23-2 record.
- Cleveland Hill enters the rankings again in Class C, landing at #19. They made a one-week appearance a few weeks ago, but were dropped after losing to Cardinal O'Hara. My reason for never having Cleveland Hill ranked locally this year was they had no wins vs. ranked small schools, but had three losses to unranked small schools (Dunkirk, Nichols, & O'Hara). However, finishing the season with wins over Eden, JFK, Tonawanda, Alden, & Depew got their record to 15-5, and the panel loves a good record. Had they noticed Olmsted's 16-4 record in the same class, the Owls might have swooped into these rankings as well.
- Franklinville remained ranked #13 in NYS Class D, despite losing to unranked Ellicottville last week, finishing second to them in the same division, and surrendering the #2 seed in Class D, while falling to the #3 seed. It's all about records for the state rankings.
For complete NYSSWA State Rankings, click here.
- Canisius beats #1 (Park) the week prior and moves up one spot from #3 to #2. This week, they lost to #6 Greece Athena and slipped back to #3, as Athena took over the #2 spot.
- Park slips to #4 in NYS Class A to make room for Greece Athena to get to #2 and continue to have Canisius (#3) ahead of Park as well.
- Walsh loses on the road to NYS Class A #2 Canisius. The only other team in the state to beat the Eagles is Park. Yet they drop Walsh FOUR spots in NYS Class B from #7 to #11. What??? Do they put ANY thought into this stuff? I feel like I'm on a hidden camera show as I'm typing this, and Neil Kerr, who heads these rankings, is about to come around the corner in his Mount Vernon T-Shirt and say "Gotcha! You should have seen the look on your face when I said we dropped Walsh farther than Health Sciences for losing at Canisius!"
- Niagara Falls fell out of the rankings this after falling big at Bishop Kearney, also unranked in Class AA.
- Last week, Middle College hammered South Park by 20+ and completed the sweep of East, but lost to a team from PA, so they fell two spots in NYS Class C to #10. This week, they move up to #9 after being idle all week.
- Yes, this was the 'Game of the Week' just two weeks ago. But let's be honest, the Bernard J. Kennedy Field House is where everyone with a pulse for the local HS hoops scene will want to be on Wednesday night for the highly anticipated regular season rematch. For most, it will be their first look at the two giants together on the same court this season.
Round One went to the Crusaders. After Park got cooking early and flew out to a 13-point lead, the Crusaders dug in and nearly came all the way back before halftime. As the second half wore on and Stafford Trueheart's big game performance kept getting bigger, Canisius took control and looked like the better team. Park, who can generate instant offense better than anyone, didn't turn up soon enough and a desperation heave from behind half court to tie as the buzzer sounded was as close as they got at the end.
Since the first big game, the Crusaders have played three straight state ranked teams, defeating Walsh and Aquinas, before finally seeing its 22-game win streak against teams from NYS snapped by Greece Athena at the RAP Showcase on Saturday night. They will have a chance to get right against Cardinal O'Hara on Monday, prior to the rematch with Park.
The Pioneers have only faced St. Francis since the first showdown, who they knocked off by nearly 50 points. They'll attempt to tune up for the Crusaders with another contest against St. Francis on Monday, this time in their gym.
They have this "We do not rank teams below .500 policy". I have never agreed with this policy, because if you really want to the best 25 teams in a classification represented in a somewhat accurate order, simply looking at records and standings will be very misleading. But whatever right? Policy is policy, thus teams like Middle College & East, who we all know are among the top 20 teams in NYS Class C (more likely top 10 for both) have to wait until they collect a bunch of lopsided league wins to counteract losses to highly ranked large schools from December's nonleague schedule. Basically, punishing teams for creating and playing a challenging schedule designed make the team better. But like I said, policy is policy, and as long as they stay consistent with that, we'll live with it.
Mount Vernon had been #14 in NYS Class AA last week with a record of 1-1. After collecting one win and two losses, with the second loss to Green Tech (#19 in NYS Class AA), Mount Vernon's record dropped to 2-3. But it didn't drop them out of the state rankings - instead, you will find Mount Vernon sitting at #24 this week in NYS Class AA with a 2-3 record.
Let me guess - you're confident Mount Vernon is in fact a top 25 team in Class AA and feel that a heavy front-loaded schedule is responsible for the sub .500 record, but come postseason time, Mount Vernon will be right there in the mix?? And they are undoubtedly better than other teams you could have put in the #24 spot that Lockport (with a 7-2 record) occupied last week, right??
Well, I would agree 100%. Mount Vernon should be ranked. They are a top 25 team in Class AA. Duh!!! But you can't just decided that in this particular case, an exception is warranted. Stick to your inane, stupid, illogical policy that if you are below .500, you couldn't possibly be a team deserving of rank. Let's not try getting it right this week just because it's 'Big Bad Mount Vernon'. Instead, stand up and proudly exclaim "We do not believe Mount Vernon is a top 25 team at this time. The sluggish 2-3 start suggests that Mount Vernon is no longer a top 25 power, at least not at this time. This is our policy."
If it makes sense to the state rankings panel that Middle College is not one of the best 20 Class C teams in this state because they lost to Park and UPrep, then stay consistent. If East (who just beat Class AA #24 Lockport) is to receive no consideration as a top 20 team in Class C because they have losses to the likes of Bishop Kearney, Edison Tech, McKinley, Timon, & Middle College before getting to eat up the cupcakes on its schedule, then don't make exceptions for other teams. Lots of teams are worthy of the exception granted to Mount Vernon.
- Lockport's consecutive losses to Aquinas & East got them dropped from the rankings in Class AA.
- Amherst bumped up five spots, from #18 to #13 in NYS Class A, after winning the Anthony Parlato Memorial Tournament.
- McKinley moves up seven spots in NYS Class A, from #23 to #16, following wins over Nichols & Cheektowaga.
- Franklinville slid four spots to #10 in NYS Class D after suffering its first loss of the season.
For the complete NYSSWA rankings, click here.
- Our local Class AA teams are in a similar spot to last season. There should be a very competitive race for the Section VI Class AA title, with teams like Lancaster, Lockport, Niagara Falls, Williamsville North, Jamestown, & Kenmore West all in the mix, but right now there is no top heavy team cracking the state's top 25.
- Aquinas, who has only lost to Canisius and owns big wins over Timon and St. Joe's, is only ranked #22 in NYS Class AA. They aren't even the highest ranked team from Section V - that honor goes to Fairport, who sits at #10 in NYS Class AA.
- In Class A, Chaminade (#7) and Kennedy Catholic (#5) are the teams Canisius (#4) had to beat last season to win the CHSAA state title, so that race looks very similar to last season. The only exception, Park has moved ahead of all three with its bump to Class A, and sits at the very top, #1.
- Losing to the #1 team in Class A (Park) by six points caused Amherst to fall from #13 to #19. However, losing to the #4 team in Class A (Canisius) by 16 points had no effect on Williamsville South, who remained at #21. Absolutely no logic behind that one!
- Meanwhile, McKinley is undefeated and straight torching teams, but impressing no one on the state level, as they remain at #24 and behind both Amherst & South from Section VI.
- While McKinley's wins aren't impressing the state rankings panel, they sure were drooling over the Walsh results this week. Not sure if was beating CCA or Maryvale, but the Eagles soared up the charts in Class B, from #19 to #6. They only played those two games since the last rankings, so someone on the panel placed a high premium on those results!
- Section V is the Class C capital of the world. Not only do a quarter of the ranked teams from Class C hail from Section V, but two of them are now ranked ahead of Middle College, who slipped from #1 to #4. The best part is, Middle College hasn't lost since last week, when they were ranked #1. More logic.
- Franklinville is now the highest ranked team from the Far West Region. If that holds up, they'd be favored to reach Glens Falls.
- Last week, I put an asterisk next to Niagara Falls at #28 in Class AA, because they had added five spots to include more teams. Now they've done it in Class A also. Suddenly, there's a top 30 in Class A, rather than the top 25 we've seen all season. Come on!! What about the 32nd best team in Class A??? Shouldn't #46 get a shout out somewhere too???
- Last week, Chaminade (who lost to Canisius in the CHSAA state semifinal) was tied with Amherst at #25 in Class A. Neither team has played since, but this week, Chaminade is up to #19 , while Amherst dropped out of the rankings, or to #28 if you like the tee-ball, everyone deserves a ranking theory. While I agree that Chaminade is significantly ahead of Amherst, I do not understand what the logic in moving both teams around that much when both of their seasons are over.
- Leadership, who narrowly escaped East, is #4 in Class B, while Park is #5. Both should get a shot at Westhill before the season ends, which should finally be the evidence the committee needed to push the Pioneers (CHSAA Class B state champs) ahead of Leadership Academy.
- I-Prep is the worst of the Class D teams playing in Glens Falls, ranked #4 of the four teams headed there. I doubt that is really the case.
- I've spent the last few weeks making snarky comments in this space about Webster Schroeder being ranked ahead of Jamestown in Class AA. I will no longer have to do that this year, because Webster Schroeder , ranked #18 in Class AA last week, went out in the quarterfinals to Irondequoit on Saturday night. And Jamestown is now ranked #17. So I was right.
- Aquinas will advance to Glens Falls with a 22-0 record after beating Jamestown in the regionals.
- Cleveland Hill will beat East tonight. The Golden Eagles moved up five spots in Class B, from #24 to #19, for hanging on to beat CSAT.
- Class AA is still a mess, mainly because this week, out of no where, they ranked 30 teams instead of 25 "to get some deserving squads in". Um, if they don't deserve a spot in the top 25, they don't deserve a spot at all. This isn't tee ball. Let's not change the way we do business in the third week of February.
- Webster Schroeder remains ahead of Jamestown in the state rankings. I watched them play prior to the Jamestown/Greece Athena game. Jamestown is better.
- Amherst who was dropped five spots for losing to Jamestown two weeks ago, jumped back up three places for beating Pioneer?
- Randolph dropped eight spots, from 16 to 24 in Class C for WINNING two games last week. I would have thought the loss to Maple Grove would have gotten them back into the poll...no?
- In two weeks time, Tapestry has gone from #19 in Class C to #8, for the following wins: Maritime, Buffalo Science, Buffalo Science again, & Global Concepts. The jump would not reflect the loss to Health Sciences or last night's win at Salamanca, as the rankings were done prior to those games. I like the Thunderhawks and they deserve a state ranking, I'm just not following the logic of such a significant leap over two weeks, considering the quality of wins.
- Park fell three spots for losing to Nichols, from #2 to #5 in Class B.
- Fredonia is up three spots in Class B, from #14 to #11 for winning at St. Mary's. After the recent wins over Olean & East, they should continue to ascend.
- St. Mary's has fallen out of the Class B rankings after back-to-back losses to Walsh & Fredonia.
- Sherman will play for a Class D state title.
- Class AA is a mess. Somehow, Bishop Kearney, who just lost to unbeaten & defending Class AA state champion, Green Tech, by two points, no longer deserves to be ranked.
- Webster Schroeder managed to leap frog Jamestown into the AA rankings, landing in the #19 spot. Like Jamestown, they lost to Rush-Henrietta. They have a total of four losses to Jamestown's three. One of Webster Schroeder's losses was to Greece Athena by 27 points. Jamestown lost to Athena by one. And can anyone guess what Jamestown has that Webster Schroeder does not? Four starters back from the Class AA state finalist team. Seriously, how does Webster Schroeder jump Jamestown and land at #19? Totally ridiculous!
- Amherst had no business losing on the road at Jamestown to the above mentioned Class AA state finalists who returned four starters, including the CC MVP. State rankings dropped them five spots, from 11 to 16 in Class A for that loss. Really?
- Ready for this? Randolph dropped eight spots, from 16 to 24 in Class C for WINNING two games last week. No losses since the last rankings, but an eight-spot free fall??? Hello???
- But Tapestry, who Randolph beat three weeks ago, moved up seven places in Class C from 19 to 12, after apparently really impressing the panel with last week's wins over Maritime & Buffalo Science.
- I better just stop now, I'm too fired up today. They must have done the rankings this week on a conference call after some intense Super Bowl parties.
- Since the start of the season, I've been beating the drum for CCAA I East, saying how competitive the league would be this year. After Thursday night's big game, we should know who will emerge as the this year's division champs. As of today, Salamanca & Silver Creek have identical 8-1 records in CCAA I East.
The two teams have plenty in common. Both are class C1 schools that expect to contend for a sectional title this season, after both reached the sectional semifinals last year (Silver Creek went a game farther, reaching the sectional final). Each team is led by a young, enthusiastic coach. The two best big men in the CCAA leagues play for these two: Bill Brooks of Silver Creek & Jared Fish of Salamanca. Brooks was a 2014 All-Centercourt 3rd Team selection, while Fish was HM in '14. And both teams have won this season, despite missing a key starter due to injury. Fish missed a few weeks with an ankle injury, while the Black Knights were without second leading scorer, Trevon Thompson, for several games. Both are healthy now and should start on Thursday.
Silver Creek's lone league loss came at Salamanca on January 16th, by 13 points. Both Fish and Thompson missed that game. Salamanca's league loss came at Randolph on January 13th, a team the Black Knights have already swept. Prior to arriving at Silver Creek on Thursday, the Warriors will try to avenge the loss at Randolph when they host the Cardinals on Monday night. Even if Salamanca losses a second time to Randolph, a win at Silver Creek would keep them tied for first place. But if Silver Creek wins on Thursday, they are alone at the top of CCAA I East.
Neither team is lacking for confidence coming in to this game, and both feel they are the better squad and this is their year. On Thusday we will find out if the recent success Silver Creek is enjoying is due to them taking the next step, or if Salamanca really does have the Black Knights' number and are a cut above the competitive CCAA I East.
- Jamestown got to watch its regional opponent, Aquinas, play after it lost to Greece Athena. The Lil Irish are 13-0 and the top ranked Class AA team in Section V.
- A win over the #11 team in Class A (Amherst) and a heart-breaking loss to the #2 team in Class A (Greece Athena) will get your ranked again in Class AA. Jamestown finally got back into the top 25 in Class AA this week, barely.
- Four of the top 11 Class A teams in NYS play right here in WNY.
- Greece Athena, who just beat Jamestown in a thriller, will play defending Class A Federation champ, Scotia, for the state title.
- Park (#2 in NYS Class B) will play Westhill (#1 in Class B and defending Fed champs) for this year's Class B Federation championship - something I've been predicting since December.
- Old pals, Middle College and Silver Creek will get together in the post season for a fourth straight year.
- Losing to unranked Maple Grove (Class D) had no bearing on the rankings, as Panama remained ranked #16 in Class D.
- Every team from WNY moved up in the rankings this week, except for Randolph, Tapestry, & Panama, who stayed in the same spot, and Middle College who slipped one spot.
- There's all kind of things at stake as these two get together on the first Friday night of February.
For starters, both teams are indefeated in ECIC I, making this a game for first place in the league. In the competitive league of all Class AA schools, these two have been a cut above the rest against the others all season, and thanks to a snow storm postponing the first scheduled meeting in January, both teams have had a chance to knock everyone else in league off already.
This is also a huge game in the realm of how the seeding will shake out in the upcoming sectionals a month from now. The schools are not only the class of ECIC I, but also viewed as the two best teams in Class AA. The winner will have a leg up on securing the top seed.
The Spartans and Red Raiders are currently the only two teams from Class AA ranked in the large school poll. North will enter as the #6 team, while Jamestown will come in as #3. Regardless of who wins, the game could have poll implications. The Spartans sit one spot behind Amherst, who is ranked #5. The Tigers just made the trip to Jamestown and lost by 10 points. Even in a loss, North could move past Amherst in the poll with a better showing, although I'm sure they aren't concerned with moral victories at the moment.
Every season this series tends to produce some classics, and here's hoping for more of the same. It's the first of two regular season meetings, and chances are, it could be the first of three games between them this season. See you in Jamestown on Friday for the 'Game of the Week'.
- Jamestown faces an even bigger task this weekend than it had back in December against Canisius. The Red Raiders play Greece Athena (#3 in Class A) on Saturday. The Crusaders are #7 in Class A.
- The state now agrees with me about Aquinas (12-0). I said at the beginning of the season I thought they were Section V's top Class AA team. They are now ranked #11, ahead of Fairport #16 & Bishop Kearney #20.
- Section VI's Class A is on the rise. All four teams the state has ranked moved up a spot this week, except McKinley, who jumped two spots.
- Whether it was Park's much more convincing win at Rochester's East High or the complete dismantling Aquinas put on them, Leadership Academy (Section V, Class B) is no longer ranked ahead of Park - something that bugged me for six weeks.
- St. Mary's losing a game it was supposed to (at Park) cost them two places in the poll.
- Fredonia's two wins over league opponents by a combined 75 points got them up from #22 to #16 in Class B.
- Silver Creek's win over Randolph got them ahead of Salamanca, who beat them.
- I-Prep's unbeaten league record in Yale Cup II is finally worth something - like the #12 ranking in Class D.
This game was originally supposed to be played on January 9th, but was postponed.
- After breaking the Yale Cup winning streak by winning 33 straight games against its competition from the Buffalo Public Schools, McKinley saw its run end at the hands of Middle College on January 31, 2014. The Kats proceeded to go into Mack High a week later and defeat McKinley for a second time and went on to win the Yale Cup.
McKinley would go on to win a third straight Section VI title in Class A1, while Middle College also earned a third straight Section VI crown, and made it all the way to the NYSPHAA Class C state championship game.
Once again this season, the two programs are considered elite in both the city and in their respective classifications in the section. The two games played between these annual powers will likely determine this year's Yale Cup champion just like a season ago. The Kats have already faced East twice and split with them. The Macks defeated East in their first meeting with the Panthers and will enter the game unbeaten in the city. A win on Thursday for the Kats is crucial to their chances of repeating as Yale Cup champions, as they will enter a game behind McKinley in Yale Cup I. A win for McKinley would have them well on their way to a returning to the status of Yale Cup Champs, and re-establish them as the city's top program.
As of now, McKinley is the #2 ranked large school in WNY, while Middle College is ranked #3 among WNY small schools.
- Last season, Greece Athena spent the season as the favorite to win Class AA in Section V, and were also viewed as the team that would advance to Glens Falls to represent the Far West Region (Sections V & VI). The Trojans did capture the Class AA crown in Rochester, but Jamestown had other plans for who would be making the trip to Glens.
In a memorable championship game performance, Zack Panebianco took over for the Red Raiders and put the team on his back, enroute to a 34-point performance that helped advance his team all the way to the Class AA state title game.
This year, both teams from that regional game brought back four starters and are once again favorites to win their respective sections. One big change, Greece Athena is now in Class A, meaning there is no chance of the two meeting up in the postseason. Luckily, good teams get invited to showcases like the one held at Aquinas, and we'll get to see these two go at it once more. A rematch of last year's Class AA regional with eight of ten starters back? That's gotta be 'Game of the Week' material.
- Last week, I wrote in this space "Middle College is going to Glens Falls". I got immediate feedback from multiple peole about that, because they took that statement as a bold prediction in January. But if you read what's in italics above, it says "According to the rankings", meaning, everything I write in this space is just that. I wrote 'Middle College is going to Glens Falls' because there are no teams from Section VI or Section V ranked ahead of them...hence, according to the rankings, they're going.
- Beating McKinley gets you moved up two spots (Canisius is up from 10 to 8 in Class A).
- Losing to Canisius gets you moved up three spots (McKinley is up from 14 to 11 in Class A).
- Taking care of business against the teams you're supposed to beat in your league will get you noticed. Williamsville South & Amherst both jumped up six places in the Class A rankings this week. South went from 18 to 12 after beating Sweet Home & Lake Shore, while Amherst jumped from 20 to 14 after downing Springville last week. Both teams face their stiffest league competition this week - South plays Starpoint & Amherst battles with Cheektowaga. Somehow I doubt either team jumps another six spots, should they gain those much more credible wins.
- The Class A sectionals are going to be off the charts this year, but we already knew that. After #11 McKinley & #12 South play in the Class A1 final, #14 Amherst awaits the winner in the crossover. The winner of that game gets #3 Greece Athena. According to the rankings of course.
- Leadership Academy of Section V is #4 in Class B, one spot ahead of Park at #5. They share one common opponent - both teams played at Rochester's East High. Leadership Academy beat them by six last Tuesday. Park just beat them by 25 yesterday. It will be intersesting to see if that is considered when the rankings come out again next week.
- There are at least four teams from Section V better than anything we have to offer in Class B. Fredonia is the only Section VI team ranked in Class B at #22.
- 45% of the teams ranked in Class C are from Section VI (5) & Section V (4).
- A late January game on a Friday night, between the two best teams in the league, who have developed an exciting and competitive rivalry. The game that may decide if ECIC III is a shared title or if it's owned outright. A game critical to the Class A2 seedings for sectionals a month from now. The Game of the Week.
Back in mid December, round one at Cheektowaga was a wild & epic affair. The game wasn't decided until TC Brown's contested 3-point attempt from straight away went in off the glass as the final buzzer rang. It managed to live up to a lot of preseason hype that was generated from a triad of encounters from the season prior, a year that seriously fueled this burgeoning rivalry. It doesn't hurt that both of these teams have players either.
Last season, Amherst won the league for a third straight time. However it was Cheektowaga who advanced farther in sectionals, ending the Tigers season in a wild overtime affair to win the Class A2 title - the first in Warrior history. It was also the third straight win over Amherst for the Warriors, who had knocked the league champs off twice in the regular season as well.
Most of the faces from last season are back for both teams. Over the last four games in this series, these guys have become quite familiar with each other. Cheektowaga's Dominick Welch and Amherst's TC Brown are returning 5th Team All-Centercourt selections. Zak Ciezki of the Warriors was All-Centercourt HM and just eclipsed the 1,000 point scoring mark for his career last week.
The atmosphere at the Jungle in Amherst will be as good as it gets on Friday. Tiger fans will be loud, both teams will be proud, and I'll be at the center of it all. Literally.
- Greece Athena of Section V's Class A is far more highly regarded than any WNY team this season. The Trojans, who are ranked #4 in Class A, visited Fairport on January 4th and won by 28 points, yet Fairport continues to be ranked in Class AA (#19), while Jamestown is a mere honorable mention. The Red Raiders got their shot at the mighty Trojans on January 31st in the RAP Classic at Aquinas. We'll see if they can play a game closer than 28 points.
- Canisius' dismantling of Nichols last week was worth a two spot promotion in Class A, from 12 to 10.
- McKinley got bumped up three places in Class A, from 14 to 11, after beating East (unranked in Class B).
- The Canisius/McKinley game at the MLK Classic on Saturday will feature the #11 vs. #10 ranked teams in the state in Class A.
- Williamsville South has been unranked all season, but managed to leap frog Amherst into the Class A ranks this week, after downing Williamsville East.
- Beating Walsh in Walsh will cost you! St. Mary's fell two spots in Class B this week, from 15 to 17, after winning at the buzzer at Walsh, a place Nichols lost by 10. Completely irrational!
- Middle College is going to Glens Falls.
- The top three Class D teams from Section V are all...wait for it....private schools. I know, shocker.
Once again this season, the two programs are considered elite in both the city and in their respective classifications in the section. The two games played between these annual powers will likely determine this year's Yale Cup champion just like a season ago. The Kats already own a victory over East, the only other team likely to challenge these two in the city, who McKinley hosts prior to facing the Kats, on Wednesday. A win on Friday for the Kats would have them well on their way to a repeat, while a McKinley victory would establish a clear pecking order of the city's top programs.
As of now, McKinley is the #4 ranked large school in WNY, while Middle College is ranked #4 among WNY small schools.
A new holiday tradition has begun in the Williamsville community - the Five Guys Tournament hosted by Williamsville North. This year was the third annual tournament and it's a new tradition the Spartans basketball program hopes will stick. And in keeping with tradition, the Spartans made sure the result remained the same - the championship trophy stays on Hopkins Road.
Ten seconds after Nicholas Clough struck from downtown to put his Flames in front, 3-2, North's Dylan Lambert drilled his own from beyond the arc to put the Spartans back on top - and it would be for good. Williamsville North led the final 29 minutes of the Five Guys Tournament championship game and came away with a 77-55 victory over district rival Williamsville East.
Maceo Jack earned Tournament MVP honors, after scoring 41 points over the two games. His points came in a variety of ways - from pull up jumpers to knifing through the defense to get to the rim, from converting three-point plays to dropping 3-pointers. And of course, there were dunks - none as exciting as the one he put down in transition courtesy of a perfect lob tossed by teammate Dylan Lambert. Jack rose up above the defense and used both hands to stuff the ball through the bending breakaway rim.
Another candidate for the MVP had to have been Lambert, who also had a heck of a performance, scoring 34 points in the two games, including a team-high 20 points in the title victory over the Flames. Many of those tournament points came on 3-pointers, seven in all, with five bombs coming against Williamsville East. But Lambert is far more to the Spartans than just a 3-point threat, he has become a heady team-leader who takes care of the ball, defends, and makes timely plays for North when they need them. One example would be at the end of the first half when Williamsville East had cut a 16-point Spartan lead to seven with an 11-2 run. Lambert had his number called after a North timeout and got to the charity stripe, where he sank both tosses. On the ensuing possession for the Flames, which was to be the last of the half, Lambert perfectly timed a steal by stepping in front of a pass and heading the other direction. He finished the play and the half with a #BOOM, rising up and flushing it with two-hands to send his squad to the break with a 33-22 lead.
The closest Williamsville East got in the second half was within five points midway through the third quarter. One of Lambert's five treys spurred a 7-2 North spurt that put them back up by ten. Chad Steinwachs turned in a big second half for the Spartans, scoring 12 of his 14 points over the final 16 minutes and helping to thwart any thoughts Williamsville East had of getting back into the game.
Point guard Sean Hill had a beautiful finish for North in the fourth quarter and finished with six points, but his contributions went far beyond scoring. Hill's energy on both ends of the court sets a tone for his team, but he's also the one who directs the Spartan sets and knows when to settle his squad. I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the ovation Jeffery Calderon drew from the Green Squall when he entered the game and promptly drained a pair of treys, or that Sam Cimato scored five points & looked good.
In all a great team effort from North to win this tournament over the field they competed against (Will East, Pittsford Sutherland, & St. Mary's), maybe its best showing of the season. The Spartans improved to 5-2 on the season, heading back into league play, which starts off the New Year with a pair of home contests against Clarence (Tues 1/6) and then the big one, Jamestown on Thursday, January 8th.
Clough scored a game-high 23 points for Williamsville East in the loss, while Cort Williams added 15 points.
Pittsford Sutherland defeated St. Mary's, 63-57, in the consolation game. Takal Molson led the Lancers with 21 points.
- Section V will win all five games at the regionals this year, meaning we send no teams to Glens Falls.
- Aquinas is only the third best team in Section V's Class AA. It is my belief that they are likely the best from Section V.
- Nichols loss to Walsh was seen as practically inconsequential. The Vikings dropped just one spot, while Walsh continues to be unranked.
- Park is only the 7th best Class B team in the state. If there are really six teams better, Class B may supercede Class AA as the most talented classification.
- Even Leadership Academy (Section V Class B) is better than Park.
- The Class B2 final at Buff State is the defacto overall Class B final (no Class B1 schools ranked).
- The deepest classification in Section VI is Class C (four teams ranked).
- Three teams from Section V - Bishop Kearney (13), Fairport (16), & Aquinas (18) - are better than what Section VI has to offer in Class AA.
- Canisius had a big week, knocking off two ranked Class AA teams: #4 Bishop Kearney & #10 Jamestown. The Crusaders' reward was a nine-spot jump up from #19, but not ahead of Holy Trinity (#9), who beat St. Joe's by 15 and Nichols by three last weekend. There are a total of four CHSAA Class A teams ranked ahead of Canisius.
- Jamestown and Bishop Kearney were treated differently for losing to Canisius. The Red Raiders dropped 13 places in the Class AA poll to #23, after opening at #10 in Week 1. Meanwhile, Kearney, who also lost to unranked St. Mary's (Manhasset, NY), only fell nine places from #4 to #13.
- Greece Athena is considered better than any team from WNY, ranked #5 in Class A.
- The only WNY team that will win a state title is Park in CHSAA Class B.
- A win at the buzzer over East was enough to overshadow a 19-point loss to St. Mary's, as Middle College moved up one place in the Class C ranking.
- What the Kats' win over East did do? Dropped the Panthers 14 places in Class B, from #9 to #23.
- Silver Creek's loss to Nichols bore no consequence - they remained at #11 in Class C.
- Sherman's four-point win over Panama literally caused the two teams to flip places in the Class D rankings.
- For the complete NYSSWA rankings, click here.
- Jamestown finished the regular season in a three-way tie for first place in ECIC I, before embarking on an improbable run through the Class AA state playoffs. The Red Raiders made it all the way to the NYSPHAA Class AA state championship game and nearly won the whole thing, as they trailed eventual winner Green Tech by just two points with 13 seconds remaining.
- Nichols didn't bother to listen to anyone who had already handed Canisius the Manhattan Cup. Instead, the Vikings sent shock waves through the WNY high school hoops community when they toppled the Crusaders on their home floor in the semifanals of the Manhattan Cup playoffs. Nichols went on to win its third Cup in program history, defeating Timon in the final.
- Olean's team of the ages looked all-world in the Class B1 playoffs, winning its first three games by an average margin of 38 points. Then, after surviving in the Game of the Year against East in the Class B crossover, the Huskies surged ahead, straight to the Class B state title game. Once there, they fell victim to a red-hot Westhill team, in one of the most surreal games I've ever witnessed (Westhill led 49-18 at the half and won 93-55, led by a pair of juniors who combined for 79 points).
- Until Canisius was upset in the Manhattan Cup semifinal, they dominated the local competiton like we haven't seen in some time. Its closest game of the season against a WNY team had been a 12-point win over Nichols in the regular season. Following the season, the area's most highly touted player, sophomore point guard Howard Washington, transferred out of Canisius and now attends Montverde Academy in Florida.
- McKinley came off of its state championship season with a brand new starting lineup, and proceeded to win the overall Section VI Class A title, again.
- Cheektowaga & Amherst made both ECIC III and Class A2 exciting races to follow. Amherst took the league championship, despite falling in both regualr season contests to the Warriors. Then, in the Class A2 final at Buffalo State, they went at it in an overtime thriller that saw the Warriors take the third meeting as well and claim their first ever sectional crown.
- Middle College finished ahead of both East & McKinley to win the Yale Cup and then rolled all the way to the Class C state championship game for the third time in school history, before falling to Hoosic Valley.
- St. Mary's once again represented the MMA as the Class B school in the CHSAA state final. The Lancers had a senior laden team that swept both Nichols & Park, beat Class C state finalist Middle College, Class B2 champ Fredonia, beat Class AA finalist Clarence, and swept St. Joe's.
- Sherman won its second straight Section VI Class D title. Then, despite Batavia Notre Dame's best efforts to steal another Class D regional by playing in Class D with a private school, Sherman advanced to Glens Falls after knocking Batavia ND off. The Wildcats bombed in 10 first half 3-pointers, to build a 20-point halftime lead.
- Canisius, Fredonia, I-Prep, Barker, and Sherman were all undefeated league champions.
Sherman hit 13 3-pointers in the game and took a 40-20 lead into halftime, then hung on for the victory. Jake Card was a force inside for the Wildcats and was credited with 12 rebounds. Sherman will play in the Class D semifinals at 10 am on Friday, March 14th in Glens Falls.
The Kats return to Glens Falls for the third time in their six-year program history. TJ Scott hauled in nine offensive rebounds, 11 in total, to go along with his game-high 23 points. Middle College only trailed in the game for 14 seconds - the amount of time it took for Joe Joe staton to pull up a 3-pointer and give his squad the lead back in the third quarter. It was the first loss all season for Clyde-Savannah.
The Kats will play in the Class C semifinals in Glens Falls on Friday, March 14th at 1:30 pm.
Olean reaches the Class B semifinals in Glens Falls for the second time in the last three seasons. The Huskies never trailed and were never really threatened. Wil Bathurst & Sam Eckstrom each logged double-doubles and checked out midway through the fourth quarter.
Olean will face Woodlands out of Section I on Friday, March 14th at 6:45 pm.
The Macks run as Class A state champions came to an end against a very athletic East team. Despite team star Dontay Caruthers playing just 11 minutes due to foul trouble, the Orientals were still too much for the Macks. Tommie Banks dominated the paint for East, grabbing 21 rebounds to compliment his 19 points.
East returns to Glens Falls for the first time since 2010, when they played in Class AA.
Jamestown jumped out to a 20-5 lead after one quarter and never trailed, as they avenged a 20-point home loss to begin its season. Zack Panebianco turned in one of the most incredible performances in recent postseason memory, finishing with 34 points, eight rebounds, three steals, and connected on all 10 of his free throw attempts.
The Red Raiders will face Union Endicott (Section IV) on Saturday, March 15th at 12:30 pm in Glens Falls. Jamestown was last in Glens Falls in 2011, when they reached the Class AA state final.
- Greece Athena (Class AA) is finally the state's highest ranked team out of Section V, after finishing its regular season 17-1, with none of the 17 wins by less than 10 points, including Olean, Jamestown, Fairport, & Irondequoit. The Trojans lone loss was at Olean on January 3rd.
- Canisius will knock off Nazereth for a second time, and find itself in the Federation Tournament along with Scotia-Glenville, Albany Academy, & Washington Heights.
- St. Mary's isn't worthy of a spot in the top 25 because it plays a competitive schedule and has five losses (four Class A schools & Olean).
- There's more separating Olean & East in the Buffalo News small school poll, than in the Class B state rankings.
- The gap between Middle College & Barker continues to narrow.
Click here for a complete list of state rankings.
- Clarence has to be happy with where the team is right now, after its midseason hiccup. Two weeks ago, they dropped a 16-point decision to Williamsville North and then days later, fell by nearly twice that at Jamestown. Since then, the Red Devils avenged the loss to Jamestown and put one on McKinley. Now, it's gut check time for them as accomplishing their goals moving forward means winning every game between now and regionals.
- Trailing 2-0 to McKinley, Bryan Jost sank a catch-and-shoot 3-pointer from straight away to spark a 15-2 run, as Clarence never trailed again and won going away.
- Matt Sadowy began the season as a starter for the Red Devils, but has recently been coming off the bench. His contribution against the Macks was enormous, as he came in during the second quarter and scored 10 of Clarence's 14 points and made several key plays in the paint throughout the game.
- Emaure Williams continues to improve and impress in his role with Clarence. The junior scored 11 of his team's 13 points in the 3rd quarter and seems more comfortable than ever as a second scoring option behind Ryan Funk, which allows Jost to focus on his floor general duties.
- McKinley scored a combined 89 points in its last two games and lost both. The last time the Macks lost two in a row, they followed it up with a tear through the competition that resulted in a Class A state championship.
- Lafayette's Lester Diaz is an outstanding basketball player and possibly the most competitive & scrappy one in WNY. That doesn't come through in Diaz's highlight video that I posted. He's like Ricky Rubio with an edge.
- As cool as it is to see Lafayette's gym, and while I understand its historic significance, there is such little space to manuver that it makes games look like a hectic, clustered mess. It has to be a nightmare for a referee trying to establish any consistency. There could literally be a foul called on every play.
- Lafayette was missing two starters in its loss.
- City Honors outscored the Violets by 20 in the second half after trailing by eight at the break.
- City Honors has a lot of size, which it used to its advantage late in the game for some easy baskets.
- Centaurs' junior Matt Cieslik was a huge factor in the game between breaking the press, scoring from both the field & the line, and defending Diaz for much of the game.
- The Crusaders were all business in this trip to Rochester, particularly in the 2nd half.
- The game was full of foul calls at the start, which interupted the flow of the game.
- Howard Washington had a big second quarter, scoring 14 of his game-high 24 points.
- Canisius started the second half on a 16-4 run that put the game out of reach, sparked by its defense leading to offense.
- Washington had a two-handed dunk in the game, and I'm told it was the first HS game dunk of his career.
- One of the best HS games I've watched this year because of the competitive nature between two teams loaded with playmakers, in front of a huge crowd.
- The game featured 12 lead changes and four ties.
- Olean had a 12-0 run in the second quarter from hitting four consecutive 3-pointers. Three of those came from Bathurst.
- The run happened when Greece Athena's big man, sophomore Anthony Lamb, went to the bench in foul trouble. The Trojans were forced to double team Eckstrom in the post, which opened up the perimeter.
- Lamb finished off an alley-oop backwards, with two-hands.
- The Huskies led by 11 points at halftime, despite being out-rebounded, due largely in part to how well they were shooting. Greece Athena managed just 25 first half points. However, the Trojans outscored Olean in the second half, 57-36.
- The Trojans took the lead for good midway through the fourth quarter.
- Greece Athena starts four underclassmen, and rumor has it they could drop down to Class A next season. Yikes!
- Lee Yaw fouled out in regulation, but the Red Raiders still pulled it out in OT.
- Ben Larson & Panebianco each drilled key treys in the extra session.
- Sophomore Zacc Kinsey hit some clutch free throws and sealed the win with a timely steal in the final seconds of overtime.
** Despite a great day on the tour of high school games, the highlight and best game of my day was easily Syracuse's overtime win against Duke. I finished watching it at 3:30 am and had no idea how it ended until I was done watching it. Go Orange!!!
- One of, if not the most competitive league in all of WNY this season, ECIC II has produced a compelling league race all season. Not only did no team make it to the half-way point without a loss, but the first place team in ECIC II has two losses.
Iroquois is the team currently sitting atop the ECIC II standings, while Williamsville East is a spot behind in second place, locked in a tie with Sweet Home, Williamsville South, & Hamburg. All the teams in second place in ECIC II have three league losses.
In the first meeting between the two, the Flames scored a nine-point home win over the Chiefs to account for one of the Iroquois losses. The Chiefs later dropped a tight one at Williamsville South, but Iroquois has yet to lose on its home court this season.
A win for Williamsville East would force a five-way tie in the race for the ECIC II crown and make it more complicated than a three-legged burlap sack picnic race. A win for the Chiefs over Williamsville East would all but ensure at least a share of the ECIC II title, while winning out would give Iroquois the title outright.
- Canisius vs. Webster Schroeder: After considerable routs of Olean, St. Joe's, & McKinley, the Crusaders face one of the better teams from Rochester. Last season, Webster Schroeder beat Niagara Falls in the classic and were considered the best Class AA team in Section V, until Bishop Kearney put it all together at season's end and knocked them out in the Class AA1 title game, enroute to winning it all in NYS.
- Olean vs. Greece Athena: This one will be a rematch of a game played in Olean a month prior. The Huskies won round 1 convincingly, 87-71, behind a strong performance from Sam Eckstrom. Not only was that the lone loss on the year for Athena, they haven't won a game by less than 17 points all season. They are considered the top team in all of Section V, and between round 2 being in Rochester & Athena stinging a bit from its only loss, I expect the rematch to be a closer affair.
- Jamestown vs. East (Rochester): East has long been a Class AA powerhouse in Section V. This season, the Orientals drop down to Class A, meaning they are quite likely the team our Class A rep would see in the regionals come March. How Jamestown fares on East's court in the event's headliner will provide some gauge for WNY fans as to the chances of our rep getting past this program if they are indeed the Section V Class A winner. The polls say our Class A rep will be McKinley again, and the Macks have been ahead of Jamestown in the local polls all season. A strong showing from the Red Raiders could get everyone excited about our chances of winning more games than not against Section V at regionals this year.
- The Yale Cup is the name of Buffalo's city league, and also the name of the trophy every team competing in that league covets. East and McKinley have combined to win five of the last seven Yale Cups, including the last three. East won it in 2007, 2009, & 2011. McKinley hoisted it back-to-back the last two seasons, 2012 & 2013. The Cup was won by Grover in 2008, before McKinley knocked them out of the playoffs...only to have its season ended by East, who advanced to Glens Falls in Class A that year. Needless to say, these two programs are the gold standard of city basketball.
Both teams will enter the game undefeated in league play. In fact, McKinley has been unbeaten in the Yale Cup in each of the last two seasons and enters the game with a 29-game winning streak in the Yale Cup. That would be a remarkable feat for any team in any league to win that many in a row, but especially in a talent-laden league like the Yale Cup. The Macks winning streak is closing in on history - Riverside holds the benchmark at 34 games dating back to the Mike Williams era in 2005 & 2006. If you include postseason & nonleague games against Yale Cup schools, McKinley has won 33 consecutively versus Buffalo Public Schools.
The Macks were ranked sixth in last week's large school poll, and will likely move up, possibly as high as #2, following a win over Williamsville North on Friday. McKinley is also considered a top 20 team in NYS in Class A. East will enter the game as not only the top ranked small school in WNY, but in all of NYS.
- Within one week, the two Section VI Class B powerhouses (East & Olean) knocked off the very best Section V has to offer. Greece Athena is the highest Class AA team ranked from Section V at #15, while Aquinas is ranked at #17 in Class AA.
- Middle College should cancel it's hotel reservation in Glens Falls. Clyde-Savannah of Section V has moved a spot ahead of them.
- Yes, I'm picking this game even though the Canisius/St. Joe's rivalry renews just hours before on the same day. For me, it came down to which game I'm most excited to attend in the upcoming week. In a week of great matchups throughout, the finale on Saturday night should be a grand one.
By now, I think many are coming around to the notion that the game of the season will happen on a Tuesday night in March at Buffalo State - an Olean/East Class B crossover rematch. Well the Huskies northeastern journey on Saturday to face Aquinas is as close as we're getting to that one for a couple of months.
East will be just two weeks removed from a win at Aquinas when the Huskies roll in to Rochester, and Olean will be just one week removed from an incredible showing at home against Greece Athena. At this point, the speculation over which Class B school is better, Olean or East, is running rampant in WNY. We know for sure that both schools are legit, but Saturday night will offer us a common opponent between the two schools, played at the same location.
With over 100 teams competing in the WNY high school basketball scene, there's always going to be some very good players you've never of. But if you spend any time reading this blog, you're aware of the kid that's turning heads in the northeastern end of Niagara County. By the end of the season, you may even gain some familiarity with his teammates. Last night I watched a team that looks poised to make a run in the postseason, a group that is far from a one-man show.
Barker got a game-high 18 points from senior career 1,000 point scorer Jake Haight and another well-rounded outing from his supporting cast, as they had no trouble disposing of Pembroke of Section V, 67-31. With the win, the Raiders improve their record to 4-0 on the season.
It didn't take long for Haight to make an impact on the game. After Pembroke took control of the ball following a sloppy scramble off the opening tip, Haight stole the first pass of the game and was off in the other direction, finishing with a one-handed slam. Minutes later, he was off to the races on another break, but this time it was contested by a Pembroke defender. Haight glided through the air, faked a pass to a trailing teammate, and then softly laid it in like he was Dr. J playing in the ABA. On the very next possession, he swished a 3-pointer that gave him eight points in the first five minutes. Mitch Luckman, who also netted eight points in the opening stanza, banged a pair of treys to end the quarter, giving Barker a 16-7 lead.
Early in the second quarter, the Raiders used a 9-0 run (four points apiece from Haight & Luckman) to take a commanding 25-9 lead. The teams headed to intermission with Barker in front 29-14 and with the outcome seeming to be a foregone conclusion. Three minutes into the second half, Christopher Sweeney (four second half 3-pointers) had begun to heat up from the perimeter and the Raiders extended their lead to 21 points. After carrying a 47-27 advantage into the game's final frame, Barker pushed its lead to 59-29 in less than three minutes, and gave way to the reserves over the final five minutes of the contest. Even the Raider reserves were feeling it, outscoring the Dragons, 8-2, during the final span.
This Barker team is active defensively and they like to go after the ball. That style is made possible by the interior presence of Bryce Moeller. There were no heights listed in the program, but Moeller has to go about 6-6 with long arms. He was excellent at rejecting or altering the shots of any Pembroke player able to penetrate inside or beat a gambling defender. He also did a nice job on the boards.
Luckman does a lot of the ball handling for Barker, is a strong, competitive kid, and can hurt you from outside. He finished with 17 points, with 12 of those coming in the first half. Sweeney added 14 points for Barker, and as I alluded to above, shows off a nice touch from outside. Haight looks about 6-3, and can do it all. Athletically, he was at another level from the others in the game and plays with a free spirited style that makes it evident as to just how much he enjoys playing the game. His all-around effort included six rebounds, six assists, five blocks, and three steals.
According to the banners on the wall, the last time Barker won a league championship was 1978. I think it might be safe for the locals to begin planning a parade, because I'd be very surprised if there's another team in the N-O that will challenge this year's Barker squad from capturing its first league championship in 36 years.
- For a second straight season, the Crusaders win the Tom Keenan Memorial Tournament by knocking off Nazereth. When it happened last season, it turned out to be a preview of the CHSAA Class A state championship game. What makes this year's tournament victory for more impressive to me - Nazereth returned four starters from last year's state championship team...Canisius brought back one (Ryan Richards) from its runner-up squad. In my opinion, considering the opponent, it was the most impressive victory of Kyle Husband's coaching career.
We've all heard plenty about Howard Washington by now. After seeing him play twice this weekend, I now understand why he's so highly sought after. He stays within the game, stays under control, and keeps his teammates involved. Against Fordham Prep on Friday, he quietly scored 20 points and then finished with just five points on Saturday, but seemed equally effective in both games. He's a great example of a player who doesn't look to get his, but rather looks to help his team get theirs.
The other Crusader sophomore in the starting lineup, Stafford Trueheart, made a huge impression on me. He is the best big man Canisius has had since Gordon Lyons, and when it's all said and done, he will likely be the best big man Canisius has ever had. Period. Trueheart is active, athletic, and long. He held his own against the inside presence of a pair of future D1 players for Nazereth, including a wicked rejection of 6-9 Manhattan commit Sampson Akilo. He combined to score 27 points in the tournament, and most, if not all of those points came without Canisius looking inside to him as its first offensive option. If the Crusaders ever run their sets looking to get him esablished inside this season, I'd expect some monster stat lines.
- I didn't see the game, but the Huskies traveled to Bishop Kearney on Friday and used a strong second half to earn an 89-69 victory over the defending Class AA state champions. Sam Eckstrom went off for a career-high 38 points in the win, an impressive feat considering the Kings had both Branden Kellam and Joseph Gause inside for him to contend with. The Huskies are off to a 4-0 start and appear hungrier than ever to make this their year to bring another state championship back home. If you have plans this Saturday afternoon, you better change them now. Olean is at Canisius for a scheduled 3:30 pm tip. The game is the fourth of a quadruple-header, so the tip time may be delayed. I'd still get there early and find a seat, and you can watch McKinley and St. Joe's go at it while you wait.
- TC Brown and Jordan Nwora each netted 20 points for the Tigers in a 71-61 win over the visiting Flyers. Amherst raced out to a 9-0 lead in the first three minutes and never allowed Maryvale to get any closer than three points, which happened early in the second quarter, before the Tigers stretched the lead back to seven points at halftime. The Tigers showed off a deep rotation littered with underclassmen, that kept the energy fresh all game.
It was another father/son Kensy vs. Kensy battle between Mark (Maryvale) and Chris (Amherst). However this season, former Maryvale assistant, Garrett Kensy (Chris' brother), has joined the Amherst bench. He is the head coach for the JV Tigers, and now also the right-hand man for Chris.
Both schools had great fan representation at the game, with Amherst using a whiteout theme. Following the game, Tiger fans stormed the court. It seemed a little unnecessary, considering it was just the league opener. But since game security wasn't expecting it and the fans were all fired up, I say have at it.
My favorite moment of the game was watching the Maryvale cheerleading coach berate one of her cheerleaders for doing backflips. Not sure what the problem was, but she came flying out to half court from the baseline to yell at her cheerleader. That couldn't have waited until she returned to the baseline? Not sure if she was looking to make an example out of the student, but from the fan commentary I could hear around me, combined with my own thinking, the only person who looked bad was the cheerleading coach. Ready? OK!
The best player no one is talking about?
On Friday, he was two blocks shy of a quadruple-double. Saturday, he scored 21 of the Black Knight's 25 second half points, including all 16 of their points in the fourth quarter. Against Olean, he scored 16 points, while Sam Eckstrom finished with 18 points in their head-to-head battle. I suspect Brooks had to side away from Eckstrom to help his teammates defensively, while the opposite was unlikely required.
The analogy I've been using to describe Brooks style - picture a super coordinated 5-9 player with great hands and vision saying, "If I was like 6-8, I would dominate inside". That's Billy Brooks, except he is 6-8. He lacks the classic post moves and footwork that players like Eckstrom and Will Regan use to command the paint, but his feel for the game, his coordination, and his timing could land him in the D1 ranks by the end of his prep days.
You would expect a guy his size to own the glass and block shots - check & check, big time. But then you see his passing and really start to become impressed. Touch passes, kick outs, threading it inside to a cutting player, and behind-the-back passes like he's holding a lacrosse stick. And nevermind any cliches like "he plays in Class C...look who he's playing against...he should dominate, he's 6-8". If you can ball, you can ball. He can ball. He is dominating, and he's putting up the kind of numbers from a big man that I haven't seen since James Ewing left Cardinal O'Hara in 2008.
- I went to the Park Tournament on Friday to check out Health Sciences, who started the year 5-0. I saw all of the Silver Creek/Buffalo Arts game and most of the first quarter of Park/Health Sciences. With Health Sciences up by double-digits early, I figured it was safe to head over to Amherst, thinking I could watch Health Sciences in the championship game on Saturday afternoon following the Tom Keenan Tournament.
Instead, Park came back and earned a 57-51 victory over the Falcons.
The following day, I returned and watched Park down Silver Creek, 48-42. Derek Cheatom scored the go ahead basket with 58 seconds remaining in the game for the Pioneers, putting them up, 44-42. Brooks missed a shot to tie the game with 13.8 seconds remaining and was then whistled for his fifth foul.
Park has won all seven of the games it has played this season, but its record is now 2-5. The Pioneers were forced to forfeit their first five wins after ineligibility of one of their players was discovered. Regardless, this team can play and will be a factor among the Class B schools in the Monsignor Martin. My brief takeaway from the few minutes I saw of Health Sciences - they are deep and very good too. So good, I'll be making it a point to see more of them this season. Good enough to challenge East in Class B2? Probably not, but I'll be shocked if they don't make it to Buffalo State this season on a mission to prove me wrong about that.
- Canisius lost its big three (Weir, White, MacDonald) and only returns Ryan Richards to its starting lineup. So after winning three straight Manhattan Cups and getting hit hard by graduation, shouldn't it be someone else's time? I think not. There's enough talent left on Delaware Avenue (remember, their JV squads are always top notch) that I'm calling for a fourth straight cup, and another spot on top of the Buffalo News large school poll at season's end.
- Speaking of Canisius, how about the Howard Washington buzz? I only watch high school games and am out of the loop during the summer AAU circuit, so I was as pleasantly surprised as anyone when the offers started rolling in. The role Washington played for Canisius as a freshman certainly didn't advertise his D1 prowess. Being the most highly touted sophomore WNY has seen since Jonny Flynn and being expected to carry the torch for the three-peating Crusaders is a pressure-packed scenario. Based on my limited interaction with him and all the reports of how hard-working and humble his off-season was, he'll take everything in stride and keep on grinding. I'm very happy for him and really looking forward to the remainder of his prep career.
- While on the topic of highly touted ballers, there's a pretty good one that plays for Williamsville North. Local fans get one more season to enjoy the Sterling Taplin show. Too bad he didn't get to practice much with his team in preparation of the big finale season (North's state finalist football team had multiple basketball players on it). Notable games for the Spartans include this weekend in the Cataract City Classic against Timon, a home game against defending Class A state champion McKinley, and pairs against league foes Jamestown and Clarence. Between Taplin's talent and the players he'll have around him this season, this will be North's best chance at winning Class AA since 2009.
- I'll still take Jamestown to win a fourth Class AA title in five years, but the departure of Brandon Kellam for the Red Raiders (transferred to Bishop Kearney), seriously levels the playing field in Class AA. It sure helps that Niagara Falls is in a major transition/rebuilding mode...whatever you want to call it...Falls is down this year. Lockport, Clarence, and Kenmore West are also lying in wait with very talented teams. Class AA could and should be the most fun it's been in a long while. The best story line might be Falls bouncing back to win the section when no one gives them a shot. As one hoop head put it, "It might be time for Falls to rely on its athleticism, roll out a 10-man rotation, and take Romeo McKinney's 32-minutes of hell approach."
- Another classification that is wide open for the taking is Class A. Defending state champion, McKinley, graduated all of its starters. The team who I think could shock the world and take Class A1 this year, wasn't even there last season. North Tonawanda was slated to be in Class A1 a year ago, but was bumped up to AA after the season began. Now, the Lumberjacks are in Class A1 and they return most of their squad that forces teams to play their brand of basketball. Along with the Macks and NT, Williamsville East, Williamsville South, Hutch-Tech, Amherst, and even Maryvale, who returns home to Class A2, should have a shot at the crown in Class A.
- I'm officially considering Aquinas and Bishop Kearney as pseudo members of the MMA that play a public postseason. I end up seeing both of those teams so often, they might as well be WNY teams. Another school I'm adopting for one year is Greece Athena of Section V. They are a Class AA school that brings the farm back from a year ago and will be a ton of fun to watch.
- East will have a lot to say about which Class B team represents Section VI at Buffalo State during regionals. The Panthers and Huskies have dueled on the big court in each of the past three seasons. This season, East brings back four starters from last year. The fifth starter, Jonathan Kinley, moved out of state, but did not suit up against the Huskies last year anyway. However, the Panthers did replace Kinley in the lineup and actually upgraded in the process. Rasheed Paul, a 6-5 forward, played for East as a sophomore and returns for his senior year. To put it simply, Paul is an animal on the boards, can score, and when he's at the top of his game, could be East's most impactful player. Add to the mix Aurelio Ayala, the leading scorer at Bennett last season who transferred in, and Olean is far from a shoe-in to represent Section VI in the Class B regionals this year.
- In Class C, Middle College brings back some major talent, along with another deep bench.
- The team that ended Middle College's season last March was Silver Creek, now competing in Class C1. After their best season in school history, the Black Knights lost senior leaders, Zed Williams and Steve Marcey. However, three starters return to Silver Creek, a sophomore sensation has emerged (Connor Gates), and possibly its best basketball talent (Andrew John) was ineligible last season, but is now ready to go for his senior year. Remember, they only need five guys to play 32 minutes each - don't count the Black Knights out just yet.
- Randolph moves down to Class C2, and is likely the heaviest favorite in any class to hoist a sectional plaque.
- Barker returns four starters, including senior Jake Haight, who you all should have heard of by now. The Raiders are poised to capture the N-O title for the first time since...well maybe ever. Has Barker ever won the league?
- Sherman won it all in Class D last season with a team of underclassmen. They lost in the regionals to University Prep - a Rochester team that is now up in Class B. The last time Section VI had a Class D team get past Rochester was 2010, when Maple Grove won the whole thing.
- Except for those St. Mary's Lancers, who took two of three from the Vikings last year, and also return plenty. The Lancers found a formula for success and executed it well against Nichols - run, run, run.
- I get to watch my first game of the year tonight. I heard Silver Creek is playing. Hmmmm.
- After going undefeated in the Yale Cup, McKinley went on to win the NYSPHAA Class A state championship.
- Canisius, who defeated McKinley by 18 in January, went unbeaten in the MMA, won a third straight Manhattan Cup, lost in the CHSAA state championship game to Nazereth, and finished at the top of the Buffalo News large school poll. The Crusaders saw two of its players, Adam Weir (POY) & Matt MacDonald (Third Team All-Centercourt), move on to the D1 ranks.
- Silver Creek won 23 straight games, before falling in the Class C state semifinal after letting a late lead slip away.
- Olean lost the Far West Regional to Batavia in stunning fashion at the buzzer, suspending its state title hopes.
- Oracle Charter won 19 straight games, including the most epic victory by any Section VI team in the regular season over eventual Class A state champion McKinley, before bowing out in the Class C1 title game to Middle College.
- St. Mary's defeated Nichols to end the regular season, and again in the Manhattan Cup playoffs to earn a trip to the CHSAA Class B state title game, where they would fall short.
- Jamestown won its third Section VI Class AA crown in four years.
- Portville ended Maple Grove's 17-game winning streak in the Class C2 semifinals in a 28-point rout.
- CSAT became the first team to finish unbeaten in the N-O in over a decade.
- Cleveland Hill ran the table in ECIC IV, before running into Class B2 champ, East.
-Lew-Port made it to Buffalo State. You can check the programs.
- Sherman held top seeded Brocton to just 27 points in the Class D final, as they advanced to the Far West Regionals.
- Bishop Kearney of Section V, who Niagara Falls and Canisius beat during the regular season, put it all together in the end and won the NYSPHAA Class AA state title.
- See you all soon!
As a pollster for the Buffalo News, I'm asked to send in my weekly ballots ranking the top ten large and small schools. The polls are based on games played through Sunday of each week. Here's a look at how I see them and some of the rationale used to get there.
1. Canisius (MMA) - The Crusaders are looking for an unblemished mark in the MMA. Three games to go, including a date with Timon on Thursday, and then a regular season finale against their rivals in the game of the week.
2. Niagara Falls (AA) - Got back in the win column by blasting Kenmore West. Host seemingly improved Lockport tonight.
3. Jamestown (AA) - After winning at West Seneca West this week, the Red Raiders can celebrate a three-peat at the top of ECIC I.
4. St. Joe's (MMA) - Got hold of a banged up Timon squad last week and showed no mercy in an explosive third quarter. Nonleaguers with Frontier & Sweet Home preceed their biggest game of the season against Canisius on Saturday. They could still earn the top seed in the Manhattan Cup playoffs with a win on the court and a win on a coin toss (call tails).
5. Williamsville North (AA) - Close out league play against Orchard Park and then finish off the regular season by entering district rival Williamsville East's place on Thursday.
6. McKinley (A1) - Beat Riverside tonight and Hutch-Tech tomorrow, the Yale Cup is all yours.
7. Clarence (AA) - No upset losses for the Red Devils this year, who are the only blemish on both Amherst and Oracle Charter's records. Also the reason North has no hopes of winning ECIC I. I wouldn't want to play them in sectionals.
8. Amherst (A2) - The Tigers lay a 13-game win streak on the line tomorrow night when they host a Depew team that's heating up at just the right time.
9. Timon/St. Jude (MMA) - In desperate need of a win when they host Aquinas on Tuesday night.
10. Williamsville South (A1) - The Billies finally get their turn at the revolving 10th spot in the large school poll (or at least this ballot). A ridiculously hot start at Sweet Home on Friday night has them believing in their chances to win it all in Class A.
1. Olean (B1) - Saw Maple Grove for the first time on Saturday and was very impressed. These Huskies beat them 42 points!
2. Silver Creek (C2) - Riding a 17-game win streak with just three of those wins by single digits. The closest game was against Randolph, a seven-point win, who they rolled by 26 in the rematch.
3. Oracle Charter (C1) - Also riding a 17-game win streak, and only two of those wins were by single digits...the closest being a five-point win at McKinley.
4. Nichols (MMA) - Hung tough against the best in WNY (Canisius) and then routed Walsh the following night. Huge game at St. Mary's this Friday.
5. East (B2) - Slid them down a spot on this ballot after watching the McKinley game get away from them. The Panthers host their sweethearts from Middle College on Valentine's Day.
6. Cleveland Hill (B2) - The Eagles had their chance to beat Holland and celebrate an outright league title postponed. They'll just have to do it this week instead.
7. Maple Grove (C2) - Seeing is believing. Lopsided box scores against CCAA III teams make it hard to gauge just how good a team is. Watching them fly all over the court at Randolph was all the proof I needed...these guys can ball.
8. Middle College (C1) - It's hard to believe that last season's state runners-up in Class C are just the fourth ranked C team on my ballot, but that's how I see them right now. A visit to East on Thursday is a great way to brush up for sectionals.
9. Lackawanna (B1) - Only losses on the season were against Cleveland Hill and Batavia.
10. St. Mary's (MMA) - How's this for ending the regular season with a bang? Home games against Nichols and Cleveland Hill will tell us if we've had the Lancers ranked too low, or just right.
- Since I've been following high school basketball in WNY, I have yet to see a team finish unbeaten against MMA competition. If the Crusaders can take care of business at home against Timon this week, they would have a chance to finish off an undefeated regular season with a victory versus their rivals.
In the first meeting between the two teams this season, Canisius was in control the entire second half and came away with a 77-65 win. The Marauders' backcourt tandem of Jordan Glover and Jaylen Morris might be more anxious than everyone else for the rematch. The pair were forced to the bench during the first half of round one after a collision left both of them dazed.
Canisius is currently the top ranked large school in WNY, while the Marauders are ranked fourth. Neither team has lost to an opponent from WNY since the first rivalry battle in January. On the season, the only WNY team Canisius has fallen to was Olean, while Jamestown, along with the Crusaders, are the only WNY teams to down St. Joe's on the season.
A lot will be on the line on Saturday, possibly including an unbeaten regular season in the MMA, whether or not a coin toss will decide the top seed for the Manhattan Cup playoffs, and most importantly, pride and bragging rights. The last time Canisius swept the Marauders was in 2010, before winning the first of its back-to-back Manhattan Cups.
Prior to the start of the Williamsville North/Jamestown game, the sportsmanship pledge was read. Instead of the game announcer reading it, two different North cheerleaders took turns reading it. Is reading the sportsmanship pledge such a heavily sought after honor that they couldn't even narrow it down to just one guest reader?
In the current basketball polls for both the boys & girls, the #1 ranked small school beat the #1 ranked large school this season. I can't imagine that's been the case too many times before this year.
Silver Creek is the only remaining undefeated team from WNY and are tied for the state's second longest winning streak at 16 games.
McKinley is amidst a 23-game winning streak in the Yale Cup and three wins from finishing a second straight season unbeaten in league. The last time that happened was in 2005 & 2006 when Riverside won consecutive Yale Cups with undefeated seasons. Those Riverside squads also hold the record for the longest winning streak in Yale Cup competition at 34 games. The Macks would need to win out this season, and begin 9-0 in league next year to break that record.
Shoutout to the students at Nichols for the new student section known as Gang Green. The Vikings Class A Federation championship team of 2010 would have given that group plenty to chant about. The newly formed gang looks and sounds like they've been at it for a long time.
There has been some discussion in this forum as to the location of the Far West Regionals being moved from Blue Cross Arena to Gates Chili High School. I can confirm the regionals will be played at Blue Cross Arena on Saturday, March 9th, beginning at 12 pm.
For the second straight year, prior to Timon/St. Jude hosting St. Joe's, a gentleman sang God Bless America. He does an awesome rendition and much of the crowd in attendance joined in. Marauders head coach Mark Simon may have said it best at the completion of the song, simply stating "It doesn't get any better than that".
Olean's starters have seen the floor in the fourth quarter of a game just three times all season, in games against Canisius, Nichols, and Rochester East.
South Park's Tyrell Mitchell set the now single-game scoring mark for WNY this season with a 41-point outburst against Hutch-Tech.
Tommy Campion joined the 1,000 point club at Jamestown with a career-high 40-point performance in a win over Lancaster.
Sterling Taplin became the all-time leading scorer at Williamsville North, surpassing the previous mark of 1,318 set by Darren Brown in 1986. Just a reminder, he's still a junior.
In an effort to inspire a late rally from the Steelers against Cleveland Hill last week, a Lackawanna fan stood and repeatedly bellowed "Come on Lackawanna, Goonies never say die". He was ejected shortly after for pointing out the referees looked like brothers because they had the same hair.
Olean has two wins this season over large schools that are defending champions: Canisius (2012 Manhattan Cup champs) and Section V's East (2012 Class AA1 champions).
Of the 20 schools currently ranked in the large and small school polls, eight of them start at least three underclassmen: Olean, Jamestown, Williamsville North, East, Clarence, Nichols, Silver Creek, and St. Mary's.
- The defending Yale Cup champions put their 22-game league winning streak on the line against the team that hoisted it the season before last, East. The Panthers have just one loss in Yale Cup I this year, and it came at the hands of the Macks in the first meeting between the two this season. McKinley defeated East, 79-76, on January 3rd.
If the Panthers could manage to snap McKinley's streak against its fellow city foes, they would pull even with the Macks in the Yale Cup I standings and find themselves in a situation where they control their own destiny, with the potential to be co-league champs. On the other hand, if McKinley is able to sweep East, it would likely claim both a second straight Yale Cup.
Imagine being the Olean Huskies. After starting four sophomores and falling in the Class B state semifinal game last season, winning it all became the expectation this season. High hopes for a team that still rolls out four underclassmen in the starting lineup, but even greater when you consider what they get to do to prepare. Besides the 12 lopsided contests the Huskies are forced to endure (also known as the CCAA I league games), they had three competitive games on the season slate, spaced out from beginning-to middle-to end of the season. We all know how the first two went - they hung on to claim a thrilling win over Canisius to start and lost to Nichols in a wakeup call without Sam Eckstrom over the holiday break. The polish-up-for-sectionals game was a long roadie to face Section V's perenial Class AA power, East. Despite multiple schools around them postponing games due to weather, Olean wasn't missing that game. You see, Huskies love snow, and they also love winning.
Olean found the competitive game they were after, as they defeated Rochester's East High, 70-65, in a back-and-forth affair that headlined the first night of the annual RAP (Rochester Area Players) Invitational. The win was the second in as many tries this season for the Huskies, against large schools that were defending champions (Canisius 2012 Manhattan Cup & V-East 2012 Class AA 1 champs).
In game that held 21 lead changes and saw Olean trail most of the third quarter, it was an 8-0 run late in the final stanza that sealed the victory fro the Huskies. Wil Bathurst scored with 2:03 remaining to give his team a one-point lead, before Nick Schmidt knocked down a 3-pointer on the ensuing possesion to increase the advantage to four points with 1:37 left. That four-point lead matched the largest for the Huskies at any point in the game (they got out to a 4-0 lead to start), and the Orientals seemed to get frantic because of it. As East would miss desperation shots, Olean would rebound and hit free throws. The Huskies were up 62-55 with 58 seconds remaining.
Sam Eckstrom picked up a pair of quick fouls in the first 2:29 of the game and sat not just the remainder of the quarter, but the remainder of the half. The strategy paid off early in the third, when Eckstrom was called for a phantom charge, but was able to remain in the game. He finished with 13 points, scoring eight of those in the third.
Bathurst paced Olean with 20 points, 14 rebounds, four blocks and one steal. Schmidt scored nine points, Pat Scholla and Max Portlow each netted eight points, and Luke Hennessey added seven points.
Portlow keyed a 7-0 run to finish the third quarter, in which he scored all seven of the points. Scholla was everywhere defensively and delivered multiple touch passes perfectly. Hennessey is as pure a point guard as there is, and he's money from the charity stripe.
- In a week loaded with marquee matchups, particularly the three-day span of games in Rochester, there are none with greater Section VI postseason implications than the rematch between North and Jamestown.
In the first duel between the two ECIC I favorites, the Spartans went into a packed James F. McElrath Gymnasium and delivered a clear message that they felt the league was theirs for the taking. Williamsville North controlled most of the game and for its efforts, got to celebrate a 14-point victory on the long ride home. Jamestown had been unbeaten entering that game and also saw a 23-game home winning streak snapped in the loss.
The past couple seasons have produced an exciting game when the teams met in Williamsville. Two season's ago, the Spartans defeated Jamestown on their home court. Last year, North looked like they were about to do it again. Sterling Taplin sank a pair of free throws with just seconds remaining to put his up by a point, before Tommy Campion drove the length of the court and finished a wild layup to give the Red Raiders a one-point win.
Since the teams last met, each has lost to an out-of-town opponent, but neither has lost to a team locally. Both will enter the contest with a record of 11-2, and despite the Spartans owning a convincing head-to-head victory less than four weeks ago, they trail Jamestown in the Buffalo News large school poll. The Red Raiders are currently ranked third, while Williamsville North is two spots behind them at number five.

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