THE VIEW FROM CENTERCOURT | Western New York Boys High School Basketball

St. Mary’s & Riverside win openers

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High school basketball season officially got underway tonight as the action tipped-off at Daemen College for the Pastor-Cooper Showcase.  Many of the usual suspects were there watching the games tonight, while several others are sure to make an appearance over the next couple of nights.  It was good to get back to the action and talk hoops with some of the regulars.

 

In the first boys game, St. Mary's had no trouble disposing of Frontier, 71-49.  The Lancers got 17 points from Devin Redden in the win, while Derek Lee lead the way for the Falcons with 13 points.  St. Mary's next plays in the Wilson Tip-Off Tournament on Thursday night, with the consolation and championship games of that tournament being held on Saturday, beginning at 1:30 pm.

 

Riverside defeated St. Francis in the night cap, 67-58.  Although the game was competitive throughout, the Frontiers lead most of the game.  Lamont Little shot the ball well and lead Riverside with 23 points, while Justice Feggans added 19 points and took game MVP honors.  Brian Melisz lead the Red Raiders with 16 points and Tyler Wagner added 15 points in defeat.  Riverside will also play next in the Wilson Tourny, facing Brunswick (Ohio) in the first round on Friday night.

 

-centercourt

22 responses to “St. Mary’s & Riverside win openers”

  1. Patrick Moran Avatar
    Patrick Moran

    Looks like Frontier might really struggle with Darius Edwards among others gone this year.
    See ya tonight.

    Reply
  2. Use Ya Left Avatar
    Use Ya Left

    Olean beat Maple Grove 71-40 Wednesday night. Couple things: MG might be down this year, while Olean has a ton of young skill and depth.
    I heard Olean struggled some against Jamestown’s guards in a scrimmage, then dominated Maryvale.
    Saturday game OHS vs. Batavia will tell more.

    Reply
  3. Lucky13 Avatar
    Lucky13

    EA scrimmaged both Batavia and McKinley. Does anybody have any info on how those went?

    Reply
  4. centercourt Avatar
    centercourt

    Use Ya Left –
    You are correct about Olean – they are going to be great this year. But I wouldn’t rush to judgement on Maple Grove just yet. My guess is they’ll be right in the Class C mix at the end of the season.
    During the 2007-08 season, a dominant Red Dragons team that would go on to win the Class C state title, lost a December game to Olean, 74-43. The Huskies also raised a state championship plaque that year.
    We’ll know plenty about Olean in the next couple of weeks. They host (Buffalo) East next Thursday, and the following week, they visit St. Mary’s. All three of those schools should be fixtures in the small school poll this season and those early games will help us sort out the order.

    Reply
  5. McShea is God Avatar
    McShea is God

    WOW Canisius 2nite looked REALLY good. Outstanding passing, loved A White’s new hair style! It’s a shame they r not playing Falls this year would have been a great game. S Weir, S Taplin, A White have locked up 1st team All WNY spots, only 2 left 2 go.
    Class C with OTC, Maple Grove, Cassadaga Valley…should b a fun 1 day trip 2 JCC March 2nd!

    Reply
  6. PJB Avatar
    PJB

    Canisius perimeter play was very good, although Weir did not have his best game. White looked tremendous on both ends of the floor, he can reek havoc for a PG trying to run an offense, with his on the ball defense . They should be even better with Hart in the line up. is he out for an extended period? I’m not sold on their bigs yet, I’d like to see them against a more competitive opponent to see is they can defend or score down low

    Reply
  7. TML1000 Avatar
    TML1000

    I’m very interested to see White go up against Bailey…possibly the two best true PG’s in the area.

    Reply
  8. centercourt Avatar
    centercourt

    Good analysis from PJB. I agree on all counts.
    Canisius was overwhelming from the opening tip until the first quarter ended. It was one of the most dominant quarters I’ve ever seen from a team. The addition of Matt Hart will make the Crusaders as dangerous as any team in WNY this season. I would have liked to see Canisius sustain its control beyond the first eight minutes though – they outscored OTC/MEC 39-38 the rest of the way, which included losing the second quarter by five.
    Canisius plays Fordham Prep next Friday and the winner of Dallas Jesuit/McQuaid on Saturday in the Keenan Classic.

    Reply
  9. KKBUNDY Avatar
    KKBUNDY

    CC, will you be posting the other Keenan games?

    Reply
  10. TML1000 Avatar
    TML1000

    From what I saw in the first half, Canisius didn’t shoot all that high of a percentage, they simply were swarming on defense and that caused many run outs and easy conversions. They have good length and depth in the paint which makes up for the lack of experience down low somewhat.
    It is often the case that when a team gets out to a big lead against a team they do not totally over match, it is difficult to keep up the intensity throughout. OTC has some athletes and decent players, so they weren’t going to keep making the same mistakes on the offensive end all game. Canisius did a good job rebounding and coupled with OTC’s inabilty to block out, the edge was huge. it will be interesting to see how Canisius’ bigs match up with more of an established post presence.

    Reply
  11. centercourt Avatar
    centercourt

    KK –
    Those are the only four teams in this year’s Keenan Tournament, following a traditional tournament format.

    Reply
  12. Prep Talk blog Avatar
    Prep Talk blog

    Blogger battle tonight at Pastor-Cooper. McShea’s appetite is going to be insane. We just saw him running around doing All-WNY football here at One News Plaza and he almost bit someone’s head off.
    http://blogs.buffalonews.com/preptalk/2011/12/the-ultimate-hoops-blogger-battle-mcshea-vs-centercourt.html

    Reply
  13. hoopster Avatar
    hoopster

    Good luck to the chow hounds. May the best blogger win!
    Little does McShea know though, CC has been quietly preparing for this showdown on the shores of Lake Ontario since May.

    Reply
  14. PJB Avatar
    PJB

    Good win for SJCI. Need work on press breaker, although I’m not sure they will see that kind of pressure the rest of the year in WNY. Reggie was great. Macks could not convert on the numerous forced turnovers. They played with intensity for all 32 min. and will be a force to be reckoned with if not the favorite in the Yale Cup.
    Timon showed a lot of poise in a surprisingly easy win vs East. Veteran backcourt really played well. Fulton and Dougherty are nice complements to Williams and Kobis, they can play with the best in Msgr Martin. East has some young talent Lewis is ultra quick at the point and Tyson has quick hops and an edge (sometimes a little too much). At this point in the season they are challenged offensively, but if past years are an indication they will get better. They can shut down anyone down low with their length

    Reply
  15. Lucky13 Avatar
    Lucky13

    Agbeko POY.
    BTW- hasn’t Reggie at UB been interested in Reggie at SJ ?

    Reply
  16. Sam Avatar
    Sam

    That would be cool. Reggie playing for Reggie.

    Reply
  17. Lucky13 Avatar
    Lucky13

    Yea…joining Stan with Javon and Will and X and the others that will still be there after this season.

    Reply
  18. tip off Avatar
    tip off

    Mc…AW for AWNY? Sure and HC for POTUS. AW not even the best player on his team. Hypothetical to challenge your post. You think Drake would trade Campion for AW straight up? Doubtful. CHS on the other hand would likely make that deal instantly. CHS wings McDonald, Weir and Hart would go off with TC at point. He plays PG the right way… always thinks others first, delivers the ball on time to open teammates, rarely makes a poor decision with the ball, tough as nails, plays tacky D. Not flashy, just very effective. He passes the ultimate test.. makes everyone around him better.

    Reply
  19. McShea is God Avatar
    McShea is God

    All I will say ‘tip off’ is check the paper the first Saturday in April. I have a pretty good record of nailing the 1st team. He will b on it. Campion? Is that a joke? Now that he is the 1st option and not the 3rd of 4th we will c how good he is.
    Really sucks Canisius and Falls won’t play this year. I hear Sal has 2 open games cause he got screwed by Prime Time. Can’t Husband just kick some crap game off this schedule and add Falls? Does he read this blog?

    Reply
  20. tip off Avatar
    tip off

    …and I predict you will have buyers remorse on that choice.

    Reply
  21. Sam Avatar
    Sam

    Will we see your random smatterings this year Mr. Centercourt. I thought it was one of the best parts of your blog last year.

    Reply
  22. centercourt Avatar
    centercourt

    Thanks Sam. Random Smatterings will definitely be back.

    Reply

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