Boys basketball: Billy Moran Tip Off Classic Consolation Game

Indians withstand Comets in Moran consolation game

Fallsburg’s great third quarter not quite enough to break into the win column

By RICHARD A. ROSS

LAKE HUNTINGTON, NY — After being victimized in the opening round by S.S. Seward and Sullivan West, Liberty and Fallsburg entered the Billy Moran Tip Off consolation game determined to display a better brand of basketball.

Mission accomplished.

Bringing a better team concept onto the hardwood would certainly assure both teams a better chance to win. To the delight of coaches Dave Slater from Liberty and Paul Marsden from Fallsburg, that team effort was on display far more frequently than in the opening round.

Fallsburg controlled the opening tip but proceeded to turn it right over. The ability to take care of the ball plagued the Comets in the early going. Liberty would have the same issue in the second half. Liberty’s Tyrone White got the night’s first points with a put back of a shot by Lakarri Byrd. Fallsburg’s Chris Gates answered with a bucket and one and the Comets took an early lead. Byrd hit the first of a pair of first-quarter threes to put Liberty on top but a quick drive by Gates to the rack tied it again.

The crowd paid rapt attention to the crisp style of play.

Liberty’s Andre Brand showed his capacity to rise above the rim and his basket followed a nice dish from Byrd to White, who netted a free throw. Another Brand vertical leaper pushed the Indians out in front 10-5.

Fallsburg kept its poise, getting a nice cut to the basket by Harris Seletsky. Byrd’s second three gave the Indians the five-point margin back. Fallsburg’s Darius Buckner cut it to two, but Liberty got the last word in, taking a 15-11 lead after one quarter.

In retrospect, Fallsburg’s spate of turnovers and rushed shots in the second quarter may have cost them the game. Liberty got to the line often by penetrating Fallsburg’s man defense, and used its size advantage and aggressive play to box out the Comets. This ploy afforded the Indians second and third- shot opportunities that allowed them to extend their lead. By the end of the second quarter, Liberty took a healthy 32-16 lead into halftime. Their defense had held the Comets to a scant five points in the quarter’s eight minutes.

If Liberty thought they had this one in the bag, they were sorely mistaken. Fallsburg has had flashes of brilliance this season, including a number of impressive slashes to the basket in their loss against Class A Walkill.

Fallsburg inbounded the ball to start the third quarter and looked far more aggressive. They pressed Liberty and contested passes and shots. Slowly Liberty’s lead began to wane. Had the Comets been able to capitalize on some relatively easy open shots and made their free throws, they might well have blown Liberty off the floor. Liberty rushed their shots and turned it over with startling regularity. Meanwhile, Gates, Buckner and David Anthony began to find their strokes. A shot by Anthony with 1:37 to go in the third got the Comets within five at 42-37.

Liberty’s Pete Panagakos picked up a loose ball and sent it through the rim to give the Indians a little more breathing room. The quarter ended with a great Fallsburg flurry, fueled by a driving lay up and one by Buckner. The Indians clung to a narrow 45-40 lead heading into the fourth quarter.

Turnover woes returned to the Comets at the game’s most inopportune moment. After each team gave the other the ball back twice, Liberty’s Dave Brown broke the scoreless segment with a nice jumper. Fallsburg stole the next Liberty possession and had three shots in a row that yielded zilch. In the clutch, the Comets are going to have to make those shots if their season is going to go north instead of south.

Liberty did not readily take advantage of the Comets’ struggles. They missed free throws and shots underneath before White hit a pair from the charity stripe to extend the lead to 55-45, but Fallsburg still had life.

A six-to-two run by the Comets brought them back to within striking distance at 59-53 with 1:34 left to play. Panagakos hit another huge bucket, and Fallsburg rushed its sets turning the ball over on two straight trips up the floor. Liberty got the last three points on free throws and evened their season at 2-2 with the Moran Consolation win. Fallsburg fell to 0-4, but showed its ability to strongly compete.

Things are looking up for the Comets, despite their record.

Gates, along with Byrd, was chosen to the All-Tournament Team. Gates led Fallsburg 16 points. Anthony posted 15 and Buckner had 10 for the Comets. Byrd led Liberty with 18 points. Brand had 17 and White had 14. The fact that scoring came from a multitude of sources pleased Slater.

“We handled the ball better and got point production from a group of players,” he said. “We also got to the line more. Last year we would have folded up when a team made a run on us like that,” he added.

Fallsburg out-shot Liberty with 23 field goals to the Indians’ 21, but Liberty had the edge at the free throw line, getting 14 of 27 while the Comets got 7 for 11. Both teams shot more free throws than in their first games.