Class A2
Amherst 68, South Park 52
The Tigers jumped out to an early 11-2 lead, but soon found themselves in a battle. The Sparks came roaring back in the second quarter and took a three-point lead, before Alex Turecki canned the last four points of the half to give Amherst a 23-22 lead at the break.
Amherst blew the doors off the Buffalo State Sports Arena in the third, outscoring South Park 26-10, and never looking back, as they reserved a place in the Class A2 final for a second straight season. Turecki and Steven Reynolds each scored a team-high 17 points for the Tigers, while Johnny Belton finished with 15 points.
Tyrell Mitchell finished his high school career with a game-high 23 points to lead South Park.
Iroquois 58, Lew-Port 48
Nate Wilkinson scored a game-high 24 points, while point guard Phil Bowen had an excellent all-around game and netted 18 points for the Chiefs, who advanced to the Class A2 final against Amherst on Saturday. Iroquois trailed after one quarter, but took an eight-point lead to intermission after finishing the first half on an 8-0 run. Though the Chiefs never trailed in the second half, the Lancers did tie things up in the third and were as close as four points in the last quarter, before the Chiefs pulled away.
Nick Mansour scored a team-high 22 points for Lew-Port in the loss.
Class B2
East 50, Cleveland Hill 45
After falling behind, 11-0, to begin the game, the Panthers made adjustments and got right back into the game, before pulling ahead in the third quarter after holding the Eagles to just six points. East took a seven-point lead into the final stanza and never allowed the Eagles to get closer than four points the rest of the way. Panther big man Tyree Tyson was the biggest factor in the game, leading his team with 20 points, grabbing numerous rebounds, and drastically altering what the Eagles could do near the basket. Johnathan Lewis scored 11 points for East, while Percy Bryant added 10 points.
Sophomore Jermaine Hairston had 13 points while senior Richard Sotero had 11 points for Cleveland Hill, who fell in the Class B2 semifinals for a third straight season after running the table in ECIC IV.
Class C2
Silver Creek 75, MST Seneca 49
Sophomore Bill Brooks scored 24 points, ripped 18 boards, and swatted seven shots, as Silver Creek raced past MST Seneca. The Black Knights remain the lone undefeated team from WNY and earned a second straight trip to the Class C2 title game, along with a third contest against CCAA II counterpart, Portville. Last season, Silver Creek needed a '3' to force overtime, and eventually ended Portville's season in a second OT of the Class C2 semifinals. Although Maple Grove was regarded as the toughest path to a sectional title, Silver Creek head coach Rob Genco has stated all season that it was Portville who most concerned him, and they were a team he had hoped to avoid for a third time.
WNY's top stat stuffer, Zed Williams, finished with 15 points, 11 rebounds, & 11 assists. Stephen Marcey scored 16 points and dropped four 3-pointers, while sophomore Brennan White added 11 points in the win.
Portville 67, Maple Grove 39
Zach Blask scored 20 points to reach 1,000 for his career, as the Panthers dismantled Maple Grove and snapped its 17-game win streak into pieces. At times, Blask single-handedly broke the Red Dragons pressure, and did whatever was neccessary to facilitate the Portville offense. Maple Grove's 39 points were just two more than its season low of 37, which Olean held them to in December.
-centercourt
Comments