Monday Basketball: Led by Frank, C-R mounts 4th quarter comeback against C-G for 3-0 start behind 53-48 triumph; B-R boys also move to 3-0; C-R girls grab 1st win
PHOTO GALLERY and STORY by CHRIS BROOKS, sports editor wellsvillesports.com
CUBA — Through their first two games on their home floor to start the season, the Rebels of Cuba-Rushford now began preparations for what would be an early measuring stick for their progress thus far.
In recent seasons, Canisteo-Greenwood has emerged as one of the area’s Swiss Army Knife teams. The team can find many ways around the court, whether it’s taking the attack down low, or pushing it outside. The options are limitless, and on Monday, they showcased almost everything from within their arsenal to deliver a massive first quarter blow.
Although the hole was deep, it was something that Cuba-Rushford slowly but surely tried to work their way out of. For the next pair of quarters, they would continue chipping away at the Redskins, despite being down by double digits for the majority of the battle. Deficit aside, they remained in reach.
When the fourth quarter approached, the Rebels would emerge. The big ending had arrived, and it was another fulfillment of that classic old saying: “It’s not how you start, but how you finish.”
In the final eight minutes of play, Cuba-Rushford caused a massive eruption. Led by the likes of Jack Frank and his big final frame on the attack, the Rebels were able to take a game-long comeback and transform it into a 3-0 start to their campaign, as they posted a herculean 26-point stanza while holding Canisteo-Greenwood to just 18 more points across the entire second half as a whole, to edge their way over the top and towards victory by a 53-48 count in the Wighthouse.
“We came out a bit flat and Canisteo did an excellent job at making us pay,” said Rebels interim head coach Rob Wight. “I’m proud of the team, and their defensive effort in the second half, as well as their resiliency. Jack Frank did an excellent job at getting to the basket, and getting us back into the game on offense. Luke (Brooks) was even more excellent off the glass, rebounding the ball for us. Overall, I’m really impressed by the guys and their ability to buy in and fight back to win this game.”
It was not the start that Cuba-Rushford (3-0) had hoped to garner out of the gate, but it was one they had to work through to reach the magnificent finish on the other side near the finish line. Out of the gate, Canisteo-Greenwood started red hot with Thomas Sirianni and his fiery stroke from inside and out, scoring 10 of the team’s 22 points in the midst of a balanced attack against the Rebels.
During the run, 10 of the first 12 points went in the direction of the visitors across the first six minutes, while the defense on the opposite end held the Rebels to just two field goals.
But the energy began to pick up for the hosts in the early stages of the second, when Finn Ricketts and Cayden Joy each capitalized on a pair of Redskins turnovers to cut their deficit. As soon as the momentum began to sway in their direction, the team in red and black shifted it back in their favor behind a pinwheel-esque move under the net from Cole Chaffee — a score that would set up a run after a 22-11 lead, tacking eight of the next 11 points onto the board to help close out the first half.
Cuba-Rushford would then right the ship come the second half, beginning by cutting their deficit down to 10 going into the last eight minutes. Their momentum would hold strong in the fourth, when their offense led by Frank and his big 12-point quarter ignited an all-balanced attack of their own to close out the night, outscoring Canisteo-Greenwood by a 26-11 count to work their way ahead permanently and towards a third straight win to open the season.
Frank would finish with a team-high 17 points to pace the Rebels offense. Behind him is Jacob Smith, who tallied 14 points. Luke Brooks finished with eight points. On the flip side, Canisteo-Greenwood was paced by Sirianni and his 21 game-high points. Noah Warriner chipped in with 13 points of his own.
Up next, Cuba-Rushford will go for four straight wins on Wednesday, as they pay a visit to Oswayo Valley for a 7:30 p.m. contest.
Canisteo-Greenwood 22 8 7 11 – 48
Cuba-Rushford 7 10 10 26 – 53
CANISTEO-GREENWOOD: Thomas Sirianni 7 2-2 21, Paiton Davis 1 0-0 3, JJ Reese 1 2-2 4, Cole Chaffee 2 1-4 5, Gage Branfield 1 0-0 2, Noah Warriner 5 3-4 13. Totals: 17 8-12 48.
CUBA-RUSHFORD: Braeden Wight 1 1-3 4, Jacob Smith 4 5-6 14, Luke Brooks 4 0-1 8, Jack Frank 6 4-8 17, Dom Bello 2 1-2 5, Finn Ricketts 1 0-0 2, Peyton Joy 0 1-2 1, Cayden Joy 1 0-0 2. Totals: 19 12-22 53.
3-point goals: C-G 6 (Sirianni 5, Davis), C-R 3 (Wight, Smith, Frank).
Total Fouls: C-G 20, C-R 13. Fouled out: Stewart (C-G).
Bolivar-Richburg 52, Campbell-Savona 38
CAMPBELL — The time to build on a big season-opening sequence came at the beginning of a fresh new week of action on Monday. For the Bolivar-Richburg Wolverines, a second consecutive ACE Tournament and 2-0 start to their campaign was now under their belts.
With one more road trip to make before heading back home for the next four games to end the calendar year, the chance to keep the flame ablaze came 90 minutes off to the east at Campbell-Savona, when they paid a visit to a tough Panthers squad that was ready for anything standing in their way.
If the Wolverines were going to have a shot, they would have to make some adjustments. Ones that would ultimately save their game.
After Campbell-Savona shook off what Bolivar-Richburg offered across the early stages of the battle, the Wolverines would re-adjust with a new look — a zone defense, which would allow the turnovers to storm down onto the hardwood as a result, as the visitors in black and red used the momentum to cushion their lead over the Panthers insurmountably to record their third straight win to open their campaign — a 52-38 edge.
“They played physically tough, and they played hard,” Wolverines coach Justin Thomas said. “They made us get out of our man-to-man coverage right away. There were a bunch of turnovers, but we had found a way to figure it out in the second half by forcing some against them, and that allowed us to pull away. We finally dug in and pushed it out little by little. Campbell-Savona gave us a good challenge all the way through. It was a tight game.”
A lead for Bolivar-Richburg (3-0) never eclipsed double digits through most of the game’s entirety, as the Wolverines had to hold off a strong defensive performance from the host Panthers across a vast majority of the bout. On offense, they would go on to outscore their opposition across all four quarters, including an 11-6 start in the opening eight minute frame.
After a near-even exchanging of pleasantries in the second to close out the half, the Wolverines made some huge adjustments at the break to counter Campbell-Savona in the second half, holding them at bay one more time with a narrow 13-9 edge win the third quarter to push out their lead to 13 going into the final eight minutes. A frame where they would ultimately keep their buckle fastened until the final buzzer to earn their third straight win.
Leading the scoring was Aydin Sisson, who continues to have a red-hot start on the attack with 18 game-high points. Following was Evan Pinney, who chipped in with 11 points of his own, while Landon Barkley and Reiss Gaines each had eight.
Bolivar-Richburg is back home to open up their home slate of action on Friday, as they welcome in Friendship/Scio for a 7:30 p.m. visit.
Bolivar-Richburg 11 14 13 14 – 52
Campbell-Savona 6 10 9 13 – 38
BOLIVAR-RICHBURG: Aydin Sisson 7 1-4 18, Landon Barkley 3 2-2 8, Reiss Gaines 3 0-0 8, Trevor Pforter 0 0-1 0, David Baldwin 1 1-2 3, Evan Pinney 4 1-2 11, James Margeson 2 0-0 4. Totals: 20 5-11 52.
CAMPBELL-SAVONA: Ethan Ribble 3 4-4 11, Mitchell Nichols-Johnson 1 0-0 2, Lucas Feldman 4 0-0 10, Collin Kleimann 2 2-2 6, Jackson Kibler 2 0-0 6, Carter Crooker 1 1-2 3. Totals: 13 7-8 38.
3-point goals: B-R 7 (Sisson 3, Gaines 2, Pinney), C-S 5 (Feldman 2, Kibler 2, Ribble).
Total Fouls: B-R 9, C-S 15. Fouled out: Ryan (C-S).
GIRLS BASKETBALL
Franklinville 49, Fillmore 47
FRANKLINVILLE — The battle between two Class D powerhouses in the Far West region lived up to every bit of hype there was surrounding it on Monday, as both Fillmore and Franklinville waged war all night long to start the brand new week on the hardwood.
For the Lady Eagles, it was their first game of the season. And it was one that saw them go back-and-forth with the Lady Panthers across all 32 minutes. During that timespan, the visitors in black and green would witness multiple deficits being overcome in the second half to keep pace right behind the Section VI perennials.
Despite that, Franklinville was able to hang on for dear life, as they leaned on some crucial and stellar special teams play coming down the stretch in the waning minutes of the battle, sparking the game’s final lead change along with it, as they squeezed their way ahead of Fillmore and held onto victory by a narrow 49-47 count.
“I was pretty pleased with the effort tonight,” said Lady Eagles coach Tom Parks. “We played well enough to give ourselves a shot, just not consistently for four quarters. That’s part of the growing process. At times, we looked very polished and at other moments, we looked like a team trying to find its way to gel. Franklinville has a pretty solid squad with a couple of girls who can shoot it. We’ll try and fix some things, and then get back at it again.”
All night long, Fillmore (0-1) and Franklinville hung right with one another. Each team would have a lead at the end of the quarter at some point, with the Lady Panthers scavenging the first going into halftime after their four-point lead held up after a deadlocking in the second quarter with the Lady Eagles. By the time the end of the third came around, the Lady Eagles would then respond with the game’s highest frame — a 17-point stanza paced by both Hope and Grace Russell, who combined for 11 of those points.
The narrow 17-13 third quarter run allowed the game to navigate its way towards a 36-all tie heading into the final eight minutes, where something had to most certainly give.
It was a frame where Fillmore had to dig their way back from in the early stages while Franklinville found their groove to work ahead. Even though the Lady Eagles fell behind, they would close the gap to a single possession each time they chipped away at their deficit. But with some clutch special teams play in the waning moments, Franklinville was able to hang on for dear life behind some huge shots at the charity stripe to provide one final lead change that put them ahead for good.
Leading the scoring for Fillmore was Hope Russell, who had a team-high 13 points to pair with four rebounds, four steals and three assists. Grace would follow behind with 12 points of her own with five assists and three steals, while Preslee Miller was a point shy of a double-double performance, collecting nine points and 10 boards off the glass.
The Lady Eagles will look to regroup back on the road Wednesday night, as they visit Genesee Valley/Belfast for a 7:30 p.m. tip in Belmont.
Fillmore 8 11 17 11 – 47
Franklinville 12 11 13 13 – 49
FILLMORE: Hope Russell 5 3-5 13, Grace Russell 5 0-0 12, Rachel Hatch 3 0-0 6, Amelia Rose 2 0-1 4, Kylee Ellsworth 0 1-2 1, Mattie McCumiskey 1 0-0 2, Preslee Miller 3 2-3 9. Totals: 19 6-11 47.
FRANKLINVILLE: Luciana Marchese 1 0-0 3, Megan Jackson 3 3-6 10, Sofia Bentley 5 2-4 14, Taylor Chase 1 2-2 4, Olivia Frank 7 0-0 14, Mackenzie Chase 2 0-0 4. Totals: 19 7-12 49.
3-point goals: Fillmore 3 (G. Russell 2, Miller), Franklinville 4 (Bentley 2, Marchese, Jackson).
Total Fouls: Fillmore 16, Franklinville 8. Fouled out: None.
Cuba-Rushford 53, Hinsdale 18
CUBA — Almost every Lady Rebel that saw action on the floor managed to find the basket along the way in Monday’s battle with visiting Hinsdale, as they accounted for a strong first half of play that automatically set the tone on what came to be a 53-18 win over the Lady Bobcats to grab their first win of the season.
“We’ve gotten off to slow starts this year so far, but it was nice to get everything going early. Hinsdale can be tough, especially defensively, so it was nice to get some transition points and open things up.” said Lady Rebels coach Aaron Wight.
The start that the Lady Rebels (1-3) wanted to have was connected upon right from the opening tip with the help of Taylor Searle, who posted 19 of her game-high 21 points all in the first 16 minutes of play — the majority of which stemmed in a half-ending 12-1 of the Lady Bobcats to carry an extension of their double-digit lead into the break.
From that point forward, they were able to lock down the victory to secure their first win of the season on their home floor.
Finishing behind Searle was Emma Retz, who posted seven points. Tara Duvall chipped in with six points, while Shae Maples and Brynn Lavery each had four. For Hinsdale (0-2), Jaylee Jimerson and Jenna Sutton each paved the way with five team-high points.
Both teams will partake in the annual Scio Christmas Tournament, which will get underway Thursday night, with Cuba-Rushford kicking off the festivities with a 6 p.m. tip-off against Houghton Academy, while Hinsdale follows with a 7:30 p.m. battle with host Friendship/Scio to cap off the evening.
Hinsdale 4 1 4 9 – 18
Cuba-Rushford 17 12 7 7 – 53
HINSDALE: Hannah Sutton 1 0-0 2, Jaylee Jimerson 2 1-2 5, Jenna Sutton 2 0-0 5, Sarah Tuttle 2 0-0 4, Kaleigh Buckles 1 0-0 2. Totals: 8 1-2 18.
CUBA-RUSHFORD: Cloey Larabee 1 0-0 3, Kendall Tompkins 1 0-0 2, Shae Maples 2 0-0 4, Aubrey Williams 0 1-2 1, Emma Retz 2 2-2 7, Brynn Lavery 2 0-0 4, Aleah Demick 1 0-0 2, Taylor Searle 9 1-2 21, Destiny Darrin 1 0-0 3, Tara Duvall 2 2-4 6. Totals: 21 6-10 53.
3-point goals: Hinsdale 1 (J. Sutton), C-R 5 (Searle 2, Larabee, Retz, Darrin).
Total Fouls: Hinsdale 9, C-R 9. Fouled out: H. Sutton (HIN).
