FORDIANS PRESS TOO MUCH FOR THE WITCHES
Slow, low scoring second leads to dramatic finish in 39-34 win
WATERFORD, N.Y. >> In the season of awards shows movies are often criticized for slow starts or unfulfilled endings. If it was treated as an over-hyped blockbuster and the tickets approached double- digit mark for admission to the Greenwich- Waterford- Halfmoon boys basketball game, theatergoers may have demanded its money back after a six point second quarter.
Six points between 10 boys varsity players and two Wasaren League teams.
The scheduled intermission allowed everyone to reset and the spectators were riveted to their respective seats in the second half as the visiting antagonists, Greenwich rallied and took a late lead and the hosting protagonist, Waterford utilized its defensive pressure through the 32nd minute to seal the 39-34 win on a steal and bucket from Mike Talavera.
“The second was tough for both coaches,” Waterford Coach Brian Eastman said. “We were able to hold the lead and for their confidence I told the guys ‘I don’t care if it’s 19-
18, you just have to keep grinding and keep believing,’ and they have.”
Playing their third game in five days, the Fordians (4- 4 Wasaren League, 7- 5 overall) the offense slowed down, but the defensive pressure didn’t take a night off.
“Monday night we hit 13 3’s, Wednesday up at Saratoga Catholic we hit seven, we weren’t shooting well (tonight),” Eastman said. “It’s been a long week for us and the way we play the conditioning plays a big factor and at the end these guys were still able to press.”
Early on, Mike Talavera was the offensive focus, scoring six of his game-high 20 points in the first quarter as Fordian big man, Bobby Valigorski dropped in seven for the early 13-8 lead.
With Greenwich Coach Duke Beck turning to a zone defense in the second, both teams struggled offensively, leading to the sixpoint second quarter.
The Witches ( 3- 3 Wasaren, 7- 4 overall) knotted the game at 25 apiece to close out the third and took its first lead of the contest on Luke Pemrick’s put back in the opening minute of the final stanza.
Sam Howard would give Greenwich its final lead of the night, 34-33 on a driving lay-up and subsequent foul with 2:51 left.
A rested Valigorski would put Waterford ahead for the final time, scoring from underneath the basket with 1:02 left for a 35-34 advantage.
The Fordian press didn’t fail in the closing minute with Mike Castracani coming up with a huge steal in the Greenwich end, failing to convert the close bucket, but Talavera was there to clean up with the put back to give Waterford a bucket of breathing room, 37-34.
Valigorski was relegated to the bench early in the second quarter, limiting his playing time, but not his output, finishing with a double-double as part of his 15-point night.
“We brought our freshman in, Gavin ( Dodah), and he did a phenomenal job where we didn’t really have a letdown,” Eastman said. “I wasn’t going to roll the dice with Bobby picking up his third going into halftime. He really played three quarters.
“Our guards, I think this is the smartest that we’ve played at the end of the game where we haven’t had some turnovers. They’ve played very cerebral from a basketball standpoint with making the right plays.”
Valigorski’s unscheduled time out led to the anemic scoring in the second for both squads.
“It’s a downer, but we had to step it up,” Michael Talavera said. “Coach told us in the second half to step it up, work hard and that’s what we did.
“Our shots weren’t really falling in, but at the end of the day our defense was there, trust Coach, trust my teammates on defense and get the win.”
The defense was keyed time and time again by Valigorski’s blocked shots, blocked passes, steals within a crowd as well as being a rebounding machine Friday night.
“I’ve always been undersized; I’ve never had a great shot. I’ve worked on it as I’ve gotten older; everything that I’ve ever gotten came from me working hard,” Bobby Valigorski said. “When I got pulled up as a freshman the only reason I got minutes is because I worked hard and I wanted to rebound. I love playing defense, I love rebounding and a lot of the times that creates a lot of our offense.”
That offense is also keyed by the unrelenting press the Fordians utilized Friday night beginning underneath its own basket against Greenwich.
“We run a lot in practice, we’re conditioned very well,” Valigorski said. “Coach tells us all the time that practices are harder than the games and the games are supposed to be fun.
“When it comes to the games we feel that we’re in great shape and we’re more tired coming out of prac- tices than we are out of a game. Pressing the whole game isn’t that big of a problem for us.”
The small-school league win at the end of a 2-1 threegame set is expected to lead to a restful weekend for the Fordians.
“Greenwich is a good team, they’re one of the top teams on the other side of the division and a lot of teams said that we couldn’t compete with these bigger schools and we’d have no shot against all these bigger schools,” Valigorski said. “We just wanted to prove that we can finish a big game, a close game, even when we’re not scoring with the ball that well shows a lot. It proves a lot to us and it proves a lot to the rest of the league.”
WATERFORD- HALFMOON 39, GREENWICH 34
Greenwich (35) Jesse Kuzmich 2- 0- 4, Carson Mosher 3- 0-7, Luke Pemrick 1- 0-2, John Walsh 2- 0- 5, Alex Curtis 2-1- 6, Sam Howard 5- 0-10. Totals: 15-1-34. Waterford-Halfmoon (39) Evan Fairclough 0-22-, Mike Castracani 0-22, Mike Talavera 9- 0-20, Bobby Valigorski 7- 0-15. Totals: 16- 4-39.
3- point goals: Greenwich – Mosher, Walsh, Curtis. Waterford – Talavera 2, Valigorski.
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