Thursday was a light night for HS basketball in WNY, so I made my way out to Silver Creek to get another look at the Black Knights, who opened in the number two spot of the first Buffalo News small school poll. Silver Creek defeated visiting Frewsburg, 88-49, in its first league game in CCAA II, and improved to a 4-0 start for a second straight season. Once again, this group did not disappoint, treating me to a fine-tuned display of transition basketball and 3-point shooting.
Silver Creek took the opening tip, thanks to 6-7 sophomore Bill Brooks, and then immediately looked inside to him for the game's opening bucket. Before Frewsburg could even attempt its second field goal at the 5:13 mark, the Black Knights were in front 11-0, thanks to 3-pointers from junior Kaine Kettle, sophomore Brennan White, and senior Stephen Marcey. A minute later, a traditional three-point play from Marcey pushed the Silver Creek lead to 16-2. With 1:33 remaining in the opening quarter, the Black Knights held a 25-6 advantage and had gotten scoring from all five starters, with four of them registering at least five points.
Less than three minutes into the second frame, Silver Creek was on top, 43-19, after three more 3-pointers from Kettle, Marcey, and Zed Williams (who also added a three-point play to the scoring spurt). After enduring a 10-1 run from Frewsburg with a pair of starters on the bench, the only substitutions of the half for the Black Knights, Silver Creek scored the final six points of the half to hold a 50-29 lead at the break.
The Silver Creek starters played sparingly in the third quarter after the score moved to 60-31 two minutes into the second half. Before the six minute mark of the fourth quarter with the score 77-40, the starting five was done for the evening.
One thing that strikes me about this team is its demeanor. They play a highly entertaining brand of ball with such flare, but they do it in a very even-keeled way. A lot of what they do seems so effortless, so calm, so chill. I actually wrote in my notebook "Chill Showtime", because while watching a 13-0 run in the second quarter last night, that's the best way I could think to describe what I was watching. Maybe some of that mentality comes from head coach Rob Genco, who is very dialed in to his team, but is also very laid back in the way he delivers his words to the team. The most emotion showed from the Silver Creek bench came late in the game when a reserve canned a deep two, after attempting to step back for three.
Four starters finished in double figures for the Black Knights. Kettle had a game-high 30 points, Marcey scored 16, Brooks added 15 points, and Williams chipped in 10. Williams, a fourth team All-Centercourt selection last season, played under 20 minutes and barely asserted himself in the game, seeming very content to defer to his teammates.
Alex Elderkin led Frewsburg with 20 points, with 13 coming in the fourth quarter.
-centercourt
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