During East's quarterfinal win over Depew on Friday, the referee turned from the action to tell Panther coach Starling Bryant (who was standing at half court) to stay in the coach's box. "Watch the game", Bryant replied.
During an injury timeout, the Depew players huddled on the court around head coach Larry Jones…and East senior Jasen Oden, who joined the Wildcats. Oden was just hunched over trying to be nonchalant and listen in on the opposition. I couldn't hear what was said, but Jones seemed to have a sense of humor about it as Oden finally left to join his team with a smirk on his face.
Tampa Bay wide receiver Mike Williams was part of a two-man cheering section for his alma mater Riverside, during the Frontiers exciting 60-58 win at Maryvale. Williams stood and bellowed chants of "I'm blind, I'm deaf, I wanna be a ref" and also "I can't hear you" in response to the Flyers student section.
Two very good players that few have heard of will get an opportunity to shine at Buffalo State this week. Bennett senior Forest Richardson and CSAT sophomore Darnell Carson are guys who are sure to have fans flipping through their programs to find out who they are.
The Class A1 semifinal between Bennett and Kenmore East could set records for the lowest attendance. The game is competing with the Manhattan Cup championship only a few minutes away, and casual Kenmore fans may choose to watch the team from Kenmore Avenue.
Holland junior Jordan Farrant finished the season on fire. After scoring 43 points in a pre-quarterfinal win over Salamanca, Farrant scored 33 of his team's 41 points in a quarterfinal loss to OTC Middle College.
Joe Licata needs just two more 3-pointers to break the New York State record, which is likely to happen on Wednesday night when the Billies face Hutch-Tech at Buffalo State at 7:45 pm.
Silver Creek followed up a double-digit upset win over Portville, by nearly pulling off a shocker against four-time Section VI champion Maple Grove. The Knights led the Red Dragons 46-40 heading into the fourth quarter on Friday night and wound up losing by just one point.
Some high scoring playoff performances from this past week include: 47 points by Vincent Bomasuto of Dunkirk in a win over Buffalo Arts, 35 points from Jaysean Paige of Jamestown in a win against Clarence, and 32 points from Dazmond Knight of Tapestry Charter in a win versus MST Seneca.
A player who probably won't earn an All-WNY honorable mention, but who's play was most deserving of praise this season, is Alex Nowocien of Lew-Port. Nowocien had a motor that never quit, outworked everyone on the court, and he did all the little things that helped the Lancers to a winning record this year. Grand Island head coach Nate Beutel said he'd be happy to start five Nowociens, an assessment that NCCC head coach Bill Beilein agreed with.
Whoever the announcer at the Koessler Center is, he's good.
Newfane better come out ready to play for the third quarter against Tonawanda. The Warriors blew open a tight game against JFK a couple weeks ago, used a big third to gain the edge in a league title-clinching win against Lackawanna, and erased a halftime deficit in the third against Alden on Friday before eventually winning by eight.
-centercourt
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