Heading onto last night's rivalry tilt at Newfane, the second place Panthers sat two games out of first in the Niagara-Orleans league. Even if they beat Wilson, they'd need to win out and get help from another team to catch up in the league race, an unlikely prospect. It's possible that Thursday night's game was played as much for pride as anything, and after the first meeting between the two this season, an emphatic Lakemen victory, the Panthers' pride had already taken a hit. As it turned out, they were too proud to take another.
In the latest edition of the Niagara County slugfest, it was Newfane who absorbed the Lakemen's best shot and then finished the fight, delivering a 45-42 win that was secured in the final minute. With the win, the Panthers improve their overall record to 13-2 on the season, while handing Wilson its first league loss .
Newfane had the Blue Zone screaming from the onset, as Scott Kneeland opened the scoring with a long-range bomb that helped the Panthers race out to a 7-1 start. It wasn't until past the quarter's midway point that the Lakemen hit their first field goal, a 3-pointer from Pat Diez. That shot served as an early spark for his team, as Wilson would score 11 straight points and led 12-8 after one.
After a Lakemen bucket from Dustin DiLaura to start the second quarter, Newfane got another '3' from Kneeland as part of a 7-0 run that put the Panthers back on top, 15-14. Wilson responded by closing the first half on an 8-1 run and took the game's momentum into the intermission.
Twice in the third quarter, Wilson was able to stretch its lead to eight points and looked like they might be ready to break the game open. Trailing 30-22 at the 3:53 mark of the third, Newfane was once again ignited by Kneeland's sharp-shooting. The senior connected again from beyond the arc and came back on the next possesion with another basket to spark a 9-2 Panther surge that closed the game to a 32-31 Lakemen lead in the final minute in the third. Wilson junior Matt Baker then checked into the game, promptly swishing a '3', and it seemed that despite Newfane's best efforts, the Lakemen would have an answer, and led 35-31 heading into the last frame.
The atmosphere in the Panther's Den was electric as the teams took the court for the final eight minutes and the Panthers seemed to sense the confidence that the home faithful had in them. Junior Reid Weber came off the bench and got the scoring started in the fourth with a pair of buckets, including a sweet baseline jumper, as part of an 8-2 run to start the quarter that gave Newfane its first lead of the second half, 39-37. Tyler Martin then showed why he's highly regarded as the league's best player, as the Wilson senior responded to his team's first deficit of the half, by confidently letting a deep 3-pointer fly over a defender, and burying it to regain the lead.
With their pride hanging in the balance, Newfane rewarded the Blue Zone's support with a blue collar finish. The game's final four minutes were filled with suffocating defense, tie ups, players diving for loose balls, and intense battles in the paint for offensive rebounds. It was Newfane's grittiest player, Connor Sears, who's will to win was inspirational to his team. Sears made plays on both ends of the court as the game hung in the balance, and his traditional three-point play with 1:45 remaining, broke a 41-41 tie and gave the Panthers the lead for good. The game fittingly ended with a potential game-tying Lakemen 3-pointer just missing the mark as the buzzer sounded.
Kneeland led the Panthers with 12 points, while Martin and Diez each paced Wilson with 11 points.
-centercourt
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