By SPENCER BATES
ALLEGANY — If there was one thing Olean boys basketball coach Tim Kolasinski wanted from his team in their matchup against Warren, it was to play the game on their terms.
The Dragons had scored a 55-point victory in their first game of the 50th Annual Joe DeCerbo Holiday Showcase over Salamanca. They are a team that, when they control the pace and get into favorable sets, can play any team out of the gym.
If his team was going to have a shot at going 2-0 at the showcase, Kolasinski knew they would need to make things uncomfortable for Warren. And through successful alterations on both sides of the ball, the Huskies managed to do just that, securing a thrilling 48-42 win.
Olean dropped out of its typical man-to-man defense and ran with a zone, an adjustment that took away the size advantage and shooting efficiency of the Dragons and one that Kolasinski was thrilled his team made so quickly.
“As a coach, there’s things that you practice every single day and you want to be careful to not send the wrong message to your team,” Kolasinski said. “But at the same time, they understand that sometimes the situation calls for something different. In this case, (Warren’s) size … and ability to get the ball in the basket is just very good. … The guys made great adjustments. I’m really, really, proud.”
On the offensive end of the floor, the Huskies slowed down the game. They took their time with possessions, not wanting to allow Warren to use the pace they thrive with. They spaced the floor which allowed them to get downhill and to the free throw line.
“There is a lot of experience (on this team), but it’s in different roles,” Kolasinski said. “We’re still learning how to play and what we’re going to be as a team this year. (Warren) played a little bit of zone early, but they played a lot of man for the duration of the game. So we didn’t want it to become a track meet by taking early, bad shots. We really thought if we could keep the floor spaced, play without the basketball … and keep them moving, that we could get to the basket.”
Olean’s Joe Mest (24) looks to drive through the Warren defense. Mest scored a team-high 16 points for the Huskies in their win over the Dragons. (Spencer Bates)
And frankly, he could not have drawn things up much better. Sure, a few more made free throws down the stretch would have made the last few minutes a little less stressful, but Olean was happy to take the win, no matter how it came.
Joe Mest led the Huskies with 16 points, 12 of which coming from beyond the 3-point arc. A breakout performance that, according to Kolasinski, will be critical for him moving forward.
“Tonight was huge for Joe,” Kolasinski said. “Joe is always going to play hard and he’s a very intelligent basketball player, but he hadn’t been seeing the ball go through as much as he would have liked this season. So to see him stay with it and have a game like that, that’s going to be huge for him.”
Adrian Bohdanowycz was the only other member of the Huskies to finish with double-figure points as scoring was a full team effort against the Dragons. He had 10 points, but perhaps even more important than his point contribution was how he set the tone for his team.
“Adrian’s always been a kid who has just left it all out on the floor and played really, really hard for us, and this year he is fully embracing his role as the point guard,” Kolasinski said. “He’s handling the ball the majority of the time and he’s still learning, but he’s starting to make really great plays. He got us into situations that we needed to be in today. … He always distributes the ball well, but today he did a good job of actually getting to the rim and finishing.”
Bohdanowycz, Mest and the rest of the Huskies wrapped up their stint in the DeCerbo Showcase with two important wins: a comfortable one against Bradford and a nailbiter over Warren. Both of which are helping bring into view the identity still yet to be settled on for this Olean team.
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AT ALLEGANY
Warren (42)
Crissey 8 0-3 17, Thrift 5 0-0 12, Eaton 1 3-5 5, Wyman 1 1-2 3, McMeans 1 0-0 3, Wood 1 0-0 2. Totals: 17 4-10 42
Olean (48)
Mest 5 2-4 16, Bohdanowycz 3 4-9 10, Rivera 3 1-6 7, Teachman 3 0-0 6, Myers 1 2-3 5, Ruggles 1 0-1 2, Hogle 1 0-0 2. Totals: 17 9-23 48
Warr. 16 22 30 42
OL 16 29 36 48
Three-point goals: Warr. 4 (Thrift 2, Crissey, McMeans), OL 5 (Mest 4, Myers); Total fouls: Warr. 19, OL 9; Fouled out: Eaton (Warr.).
