Competitive, intense high school basketball games are often won by the team that has a go-to player who can step up in a big spot and makes plays for his team.  Other times you'll see a team prevail under those circumstances because they have a floor leader who steadies the ship and maintains composure amidst chaos.  On Friday night in its season-opener, Williamsville South was able to confirm what they've believed about themselves since the first day of practice – they have both – and a whole lot of talent around those two main ingredients.

 

Inside a packed gymnasium at Williamsville North, the Billies withstood the energy from the host Spartans, and then looked to their key players to make plays late.  The result was Williamsville South prevailing in a cross-town rivalry game, 76-67, and looking like a serious threat in Section VI's Class A along the way.

 

From the moment the teams took the floor until the opening tip, there was a wild anticipation buzzing inside the gym.  As the action began to unfold, those in attendance had to quickly realize they were in for a treat, which they were.  North had its fans in a frenzy immediately, when Dylan Lambert swished a 3-pointer on the first possession.  South quickly responded with a bucket, then a trey, then North scored.  Just 1:30 into the game, the place is rocking and the teams are tied at five each.  It was a theme that would carry on over the first three quarters.

 

During those first 24 minutes of game action, North led by as many as six points.  South had taken a five-point lead at one juncture.  But most of those minutes saw the game balloon back and forth, with the Billies seemingly trailing more often than they led.  However, looking back over the game scoring, the game was tied on eight different occasions and saw 15 lead changes.

 

Lambert scored for the Spartans with one minute remaining in the third quarter, giving them a 48-43 lead.  Myles Hall and Sam Castronova each scored for South in response, making it a 48-47 lead for North.  Then, with nine seconds left in the third, the critical, game-changing moment occured.  In a loose ball scramble near the South bench, tempers quickly flared and suddenly players were being restrained.  Unfortunately in that moment for North, one of its players pushed one of the Billies in a very confrontational manner, despite the officials efforts to diffuse the situation.  

 

That earned the North player a technical foul and delivered a beautifully gift-wrapped pile of momentum to the Billies.  Castronova tied the game from the charity stripe thanks to the 'T' and as South retained possession, they got a long-range bomb off the glass from Jordan Buell to go as the quarter expired, putting South in front, 51-48.  The momentum went spilling into the final stanza and wound up being a 14-2 run for the Billies, as they executed against the man defense of the Spartans and took charge.  Castronova scored nine points during the decisive run.  South was suddenly leading, 57-50, early in the fourth quarter, and the game never got any closer than five points the rest of the way.

 

"Sam carried us through that moment, got us buckets, and then everyone else contributed" South head coach Gabe Michael said following the game.

 

"It's tough to get going in your first game.  We were constantly chasing them , down two, down three, down four, and then Jordan (Buell) banks that three…we were Buff State fired up at that point and I just had to let them go".

 

As I eluded to in the opening up top, South has a go-to player, and it should be obvious that player is Castronova.  But I also made mention of a floor leader who steadies the ship.  That player is freshman Greg Dolan, who in his first varsity action and playing in front of the type of crowd he's only ever been a spectator in, was the most composed player on the floor.

 

"He's our floor general.  We're throwing him to the wolves and that's what he wants" Michael said.  "This is what he's been working for since he was in fourth/fifth grade.  He's sick of hearing how good he is, he wants to prove it and he's motivated to do that".

 

After the performance he turned in last night, he doesn't need to prove anything.  He scored 16 points, impressive on its own, but hardly indicative of his impact on the game.  He showed outstanding body control, the ability to defend well, and was a great facilitator.  

 

Castronova turned in a game-high 26 points on the evening amd Matt Foster added 10 points.

 

Lambert had a game-high 24 points for North, who also got 16 points from Maceo Jack, with Chad Steinwachs chipping in 10 points.

 

-centercourt