Large Schools
1. Amherst (A2) - After a 30-point win over West Seneca East on Tuesday, the Tigers won their first relatively close local game at Williamsville South on Friday night by 10 points. Monday they host Starpoint and visit Hamburg on Thursday, before finally facing a local Top 10 on Saturday afternoon when they play Lockport at the BSN Sports Challenge hosted by Depew.
2. Jamestown (AA) - Still rolling along with no local losses after winning by 17 at Orchard Park on Thursday night. The Red Raiders also picked up in 11-point win over Elmira on Saturday afternoon. They will be put to the test in a big way on Monday night, when Canisius makes their first trip to Jamestown.
3. Health Sciences (AA) - Kept their win streak going (now 12 games) with a 13-point victory at Lackawanna on Friday night. The Falcons will travel to Maritime on Monday and host Tapestry on Wednesday in Round Two of the rivalry series.
4. Canisius (A) - So Shane Cercone is pretty good and so are the Crusaders when you back them up against the wall. Monday’s comeback victory against Niagara Falls was a most impressive one. Can’t wait to watch them against another Class AA power when they head to Jamestown on Monday night. The Crusaders host Park on Tuesday and then head to Nichols on Friday night with a little revenge in mind.
5. Niagara Falls (AA) - After leading for over 31 minutes on Monday, Falls stumbled for a second time this season, losing to Canisius. A 37-point win over Grand Island followed. The week ahead is a light one for the Wolverines, but the opponent is not, as they head to the Lumberyard to take on North Tonawanda this Tuesday night.
6. St. Francis (A) - A strong second-half by the Red Raiders earned them a 9-point win against McKinley on Monday, and a pair of victories by large margins followed that when they knocked off O’Hara & St. Mary’s. This Friday they will head to Kenmore Avenue to take on St. Joe’s, who they’ve already knocked off once this season.
7. St. Joe's (A) - Suffered a tough loss at Timon on Friday night after one of the more exciting games I’ve seen this season. The Marauders knocked off Park and Orchard Park to begin the week. Two top opponents from the Association loom for Joe’s, with Nichols and St. Francis visiting this week.
8. McKinley (A1) - The Macks were knocked off by St. Francis on Monday, but bounced back for 31 and 32 point victories over Hutch Tech and Middle College later in the week. They have a tough opponent coming in on Tuesday night when Clarence visits for a nonleague tilt.
9. Niagara Wheatfield (A1) - Winners in six of their last seven games, following a pair of double figure victories over Hamburg and CSAT last week. The Falcons head to Grand Island on Tuesday and then take on Frontier in the opening game of the BSN Sports Challenge at Depew on Friday.
10. Lockport (AA) - Despite leading for most of the night, the Lions fell victim to a Lew-Port comeback on Tuesday, taking a three-point loss. They came right back with a 27 point win in Grand Island on Friday. This Tuesday, Lockport is at Ken West and then they face the top team in WNY from Amherst in the finale of Saturday’s BSN Sports Challenge at Depew on Saturday.
Small Schools
1. Timon (B) - The Tigers picked up three more wins this past week, despite playing without the services of Jacob Humphrey. They were challenged by South Park at home, made quick work of Middle College on Wednesday, and came out on top of a thriller against St. Joe’s thanks to some last-minute heroics from Jaiden Harrison. On Tuesday they welcome rival Saint Francis to town, before heading off to O’Hara on Friday.
2. Nichols (B) - Took on a team from PA called Taylor Allderdice on Monday, but rolled snake eyes in a 31-point loss. The Vikings came back to register a pair of double figure victories in league wins over St. Mary’s and Park. Junior Jakye Rainey eclipsed 1,000 points scored during the week, while teammate Parker Rey exploded for a career-high 48 points. On Tuesday they take on St. Joe’s for the first time this season, and then host Canisius in a rematch of an earlier overtime victory by Nichols.
3. Lew-Port (B1) - The Lancers followed up their attention grabbing win from the week prior, by hanging in against Lockport and owning the fourth quarter in a comeback win, and they followed that with a 13-point victory over Ken West. This Wednesday Orchard Park makes the long trip to Niagara County to play at Lew-Port and on Saturday the team is matched up against Sweet Home in the BSN Sports Challenge at Depew.
4. Salamanca (B2) - Stayed unbeaten in CCAA I West with a 27-point win over Olean on Tuesday, and added wins over Southwestern & Clymer to end the week. The Warriors are at Dunkirk this Friday.
5. Fredonia (B2) - Hello Hillbillies! While I’ve been trying to figure this team out, they knew exactly who they were right along. They earned an impressive 21-point win at Southwestern on Tuesday and kept the momentum going with a huge overtime victory at a Allegany-Limestone Friday night, followed by a win against Frewsburg on Sunday. Fredonia has a pair of home games coming this week against Springville and Olean.
6. Allegany-Limestone (B2) - Following wins at Dunkirk & Riverside last week, the Gators were tripped up at home by Fredonia. On Sunday afternoon, they rolled past Holland, 69-42, in the CCAA Showcase at JCC. The remainder of the regular season schedule looks like a grind as it always is for this team, beginning this week with a visit from Wellsville and then a trip to Southwestern on Friday.
7. Depew (B1) - The Wildcats allowed 35 and 34 points respectively in wins against Maryvale and Pioneer last week, keeping them in a tie for first place in ECIC III with Lackawanna, who visits the team on Tuesday with sole possession of first place on the line. North Tonawanda comes in to take on Depew in the second game of the BSN Sports Challenge Friday night.
8. Randolph (C) - Averaged 80 points in a pair of wins last week against Gowanda & Cassadaga Valley, while allowing just 28 points to the latter. They’ll see a tough opponent at their place when Southwestern comes in on Tuesday and then travel to Silver Creek Friday night.
9. Bennett (B2) - The Tigers split in two league games last week, losing at I-Prep by five and then defeating South Park by five. The team is idle this week.
10. Newfane (B2) - Improved to 5-0 in the N-O with double figure wins against Albion and at Akron last week. Medina travels to Newfane on Tuesday, followed by a rematch with Barker on Friday night.
-centercourt
Shane Cercone for Canisius is a beast. Best player I’ve saw this year.
Posted by: KF | Monday, January 23, 2023 at 10:07 AM