East Catholic tops Windsor in defensive battle
East Catholic faced Windsor in a battle of two of the top boys’ basketball teams in the state Friday night in a sold-out Windsor High gym, but the CCC game didn’t quite turn out the way either team expected.
East Catholic won the battle of the unbeatens, 49-42.
“It was a real quality opponent on the road in a hostile environment, place is sold out on a Friday night, so anytime you can get into those games, it’s really special,” East Catholic coach Luke Reilly said. “To be able to get out with a win — and it wasn’t a pretty game, from either team — but to win an ugly game on the road and to learn from the mistakes you made along the way — that’s ideal.
“There’s a lot we can get out of that film. If we can continue to improve and also sneak in some of those wins, that’s what it’s all about.”
Windsor was averaging 68 points per game before Friday and had scored 90 in the previous game against Wethersfield.
“Collectively, defensively, as a team, Windsor had a great offensive punch, we were able to hold them to a point total that would be our goal,” Reilly said. “We felt good about that. It was a defensive battle at both ends because we both wanted to score more points.”
Both East Catholic and Windsor will head up to Springfield in the next week to play different teams in the Hoophall Classic.
Players of the Week
Michael Coggins, Suffield: Coggins scored 40 points, including a 10-for10 performance from the free throw line in the fourth quarter, in a 64-51 win over Bolton Friday.
Badara Diakite, Northwest Catholic: Diakite scored 22 points in a 74-53 win over Conard Tuesday.
Riley Fox, Conard: Fox had 34 points in a 74-53 loss to Northwest Catholic Tuesday and 33 — including his 1,000th career point — in a 54-50 come from behind win over Middletown Thursday.
Dam’nic Gittens, Cheney Tech: Gittens scored 32 points in a 77-64 victory over Goodwin Tech Tuesday.
Alex Herron, Enfield: Herron had a double-double (18 points and 10 rebounds) in a 69-54 win over East Hartford Tuesday.
James Jones, East Catholic: Jones had 18 points in a 49-42 win over Windsor Friday.
Cody Murphy, Ellington: Murphy hit 10 free throws and had 22 points in Ellington’s 62-48 win over Rockville Wednesday.
Conner O’leary, Glastonbury: O’leary had 25 points, including 10 free throws, in a 57-45 victory over Maloney Friday.
Anthony Parker, Xavier: Parker had 32 points in Xavier’s 65-52 win over Cheshire Tuesday and 22 points in a 61-42 win over Amity Friday.
Chris Wilson, Weaver: Wilson had a double-double (15 points, 10 rebounds) and five blocks in a 56-37 win over Classical Wednesday.
Storylines of the Week
Sheehan won its first game over Cheshire 56-46 as Anthony Markanthony scored 11 of his 20 points in the fourth quarter. It was the first win for first-year coach John Wodatch.
Junior Riley Fox had 14 of his 33 points in the fourth quarter to boost Conard over Middletown Thursday, capping a Conard comeback after the Red Wolves trailed by nine points in the third quarter. Conard was missing three of its starters due to injuries.
Ellington ran its record to 7-0 to stay atop the NCCC standings as the Knights beat Rockville 62-48 and Granby 60-48 last week.
Games to Watch Xavier (6-1) at Wilbur Cross (4-2), Tuesday, 7 p.m.:
Two of the top teams in the SCC meet up. Wilbur Cross has losses to Windsor and Northwest Catholic while Xavier, which has won four straight, lost to Notre Dame-west Haven.
Windsor (7-1) vs. Central (Springfield, Mass) (5-1) at Springfield College, Thursday, 7:30
p.m.: Another Hoophall Classic game. Springfield’s only loss came to Brookline (Mass.) by two points; Windsor has only lost to East Catholic.
Northwest Catholic (8-0) vs. Newton North (Mass.) (6-1) at Springfield College, Thursday, 3 p.m.: Northwest Catholic puts its unbeaten record on the line at the Hoophall Classic against Newton North.
East Catholic vs. St. Augustine (Calif.), at Springfield College, Saturday, 10:30
a.m.: East Catholic heads up to the Hoophall Classic in Springfield this weekend to test its mettle in a national tournament against a top California team.