(Maryvale's Brian Sullivan lets a dagger fly in overtime)

 

This centercourt stuff comes with some tough decisions.  Often I find days where I'm torn for hours about which game I want to be at when faced with multiple options that are calling me.  Tuesday night's hoops schedule had several games I wanted to be at, but there was one easy choice for me.  Olean was coming to town to take on Maryvale.  Anytime Olean is in the area, it has to be a consideration – that program has earned as much.  But the Huskies attention-grabbing start to their season, a convincing tournament championship win over an East Aurora squad that I remain convinced is the one to look out for in the small school ranks, was proof that despite the move up to Class A2, they'd still be a title contender.  However, it wasn't just about Olean, because there were some other games I really wanted to see.  It was about the feeling that Olean was coming to a place where its opponent, Maryvale, would chomping at the bit and more than capable of getting the best of this elite program.  

 

In a game that felt like a league rivalry in February, Maryvale took the defending Class B State Champions to overtime and then took them out in a sizzling 59-54 victory.  The season-opening win for the Flyers was also the first loss to a public school for the Huskies since Williamsville South beat them in the 2015 Class A regional qualifier at Buff State.

 

"You always want to play your best and Olean brings that out of you," Maryvale coach Mark Kensy said following the win.  "Jeff (Anastasia) a tremendous coach. His players play hard, they work hard."

 

Both teams were fantastic and so were the Maryvale fans.  It was a basketball game that offered everything – atmosphere, tactical play, passionate coaching, players willing themselves to do just a little more, big shots, and a big-time performance.

 

Ray Blackwell scored a game-high 26 points, with 18 of those coming in a first half where he was as dialed in as I've seen a player in a while.  The junior guard repeatedly got to the rack and made tough finish after tough finish, along with sticking one from long range.  His six-point solo run to finish the half gave the Flyers a 29-26 edge at halftime.

 

Olean adjusted to slow Blackwell by throwing a Box & 1 at him to start the second half.  Monty Shoemaker opened the third quarter with one of his four 3-pointers in the contest, which triggered a 9-0 run that put the Huskies in front, 35-29.  Olean held Maryvale to just five points in the third quarter until the final minute, when Blackwell came through with another pair of buckets that got the game all tied up again, 38-38, heading into the fourth.

 

Shoemaker opened the scoring in the fourth quarter, which gave the Huskies a lead they would maintain for nearly the remainder of regulation.  Olean showed immense game awareness throughout the frame, knowing when to bring the ball back out on a break without numbers, taking every shot clock down as they nursed a lead, and then securing key offensive rebounds to reset and continue the possession.  

 

As the game reached the final minute, the Flyers trailed by four points.  A miss by the Huskies gave them life, and that's when a junior forward came off the bench for his first big varsity moment.  Mark Bailey let a 3-pointer fly from the right corner with 38 seconds left and drilled it, trimming the Olean lead to 46-45.  The Flyers opted to foul immediately and the decision would pay off.  After the Huskies converted the front end of the 1 & 1, the second missed to give Maryvale a chance to tie.

 

With 18 seconds left, Ted York-Brown scored in the paint, tying the game at 47-47.  As soon as the ball was inbounded, Olean was hit with a charging call against the Flyer's full court press.  Maryvale was unable to get a shot off on its final possession of regulation, and the game headed to overtime.

 

The extra session began with a traditional three-point play from Olean sophomore Mike Schmidt, making it 50-47 Huskies.  But the Flyers defense would not allow another Olean field goal until it was too late and the final buzzer was ringing.  Instead, from the same corner where he'd hit the big trey in the fourth quarter, Bailey banged another to tie the game, 50-50.  On the ensuing possession, sophomore Jay Henley slipped through the Olean defense, got the rack, and finished for the go ahead score, 52-50.

 

Following a free throw from the Huskies, Maryvale looked to get the ball in the hands of Blackwell, leading 52-51.  After shaking his defender just enough to secure a pass from Brian Sullivan, he gave it right back to him on the left wing.  Sullivan let a '3' go with the defense bearing down (pictured above).  It was money!  The shot gave the Flyers a four-point lead in the final minute of OT, where Maryvale would add a basket by York-Brown and free throws from Blackwell.  Game over.

 

"We went down there last year and played their state championship team," said Kensy.  "They took it to us pretty good.  On November 7th when we started, we had one thing in mind – to show up tonight, play hard, and let the chips fall where they may."

 

Those chips fell like 3-point bombs detonated by Bailey & Sullivan.

 

Blackwell added five assists and five rebounds to his game-high 26 points, while Sullivan scored 10 points.  York-Brown grabbed nine boards to go with eight points, while Adam Meyerhofer scored five points to go with seven rebounds.

 

"Adam Meyerhofer did a great job collecting rebounds for us and so did 5-11 Ted York-Brown, who plays like he's 6-4," said Kensy.  "I just couldn't be prouder."

 

Shoemaker led Olean with 20 points, while Schmidt scored 16 points, secured seven boards, and dished three assists.  Tristen Snyder added eight points, eight rebounds, and four assists for the Huskies.

 

Point Totals

Maryvale:  Ray Blackwell 26, Brian Sullivan 10, Ted York-Brown 8, Mark Bailey 6, Adam Meyerhofer 5, Jay Henley 4

Olean:  Monty Shoemaker 20, Mike Schmidt 16, Tristen Snyder 8, Luke Rogers 7, Matt Droney 3

 

-centercourt