By SPENCER BATES
SALAMANCA — In its penultimate game of the regular season, the Salamanca boys basketball team suffered a loss that was tough to swallow.
It was an admittedly off-color performance according to head coach Adam Bennett, who was critical of the effort, or lack thereof, in what was a 73-46 loss to Olean. And ahead of them, for their final game of the campaign, was a team that had also handed them a lopsided defeat in recent weeks.
Bennett was left looking for answers after the Olean loss and noted that he needed “to see the version of our team that we see in practice every day.”
By means of a complete team performance in a high-energy affair, not only did he get a better performance out of his team, but a 62-50 win over a Trojans team that had downed them by 18 points less than a fortnight ago.
“That was a huge game for us,” Bennett said. “We played at their place a couple weeks ago and we got blown out. It was kind of the same thing at Olean, and we challenged our guys. It’s amazing what you can accomplish when you believe in yourself. From start to finish, we never really looked at the scoreboard. It was just, ‘let’s play as hard as we can, let’s get back to playing the basketball that we are used to playing,’ and I thought, especially off the ball, I saw the desperation in the eyes of our guys. There’s no better feeling as a coach. This is a big win for us and I told them, they got to get addicted to this feeling, because we got a lot more to go if we play like that.”
Early in the fourth quarter, Salamanca had pushed its advantage to 15 points. A relatively comfortable margin. At least it was until a quick 8-0 run from Southwestern put the game right back into contention.
But the Warriors were not to be denied.
Responding with a handful of buckets and defensive stops, they closed out the game, showing a level of composure worthy of praise.
“We talk a lot about playing with passion, energy, effort, enthusiasm, but really not on emotion, because when you play on emotion, you’re riding the roller coaster,” Bennett said. “We had a little emotion involved there, I mean that’s a very good team that has been playing good basketball, and it takes a lot. … That’s what Salamanca basketball is all about, that kind of passion and that effort.”
A big factor in the win for Salamanca was its ability to shut down the 3-point arc. Southwestern was reliant on the deep ball all night, putting up a significant amount of attempts from range. And in the first quarter, the shots were falling. Four 3s had the Trojans with a narrow lead after eight minutes of action. But in the second quarter, and for the rest of the game for that matter, the 3s were harder to come by.
“Our coverage was a lot better, they were pinning on down screens, and they were curling outside, and we were getting caught on screens,” Bennett said. “They run these little waist screens and flares, and we just did a better job of selling out on the perimeter and knowing that their first look is not going to be inside, and when they go inside, whether it be the short corner or the high post, they’re looking to kick the ball out. … You’re not going to stop them from shooting 3s, but you can certainly alter the shots. I thought we did that after the first quarter.”
Salamanca’s Payton Maybee (14) puts up a shot while fighting through contact against Southwestern. Maybee scored seven points for the Warriors against the Trojans. (Spencer Bates)
Salamanca was led by Payton Bradley, who finished what may have been his final game on his home court with a team-high 21 points. Bradley is one of the last remaining players for the Warriors who experienced their run to the New York State Public High School Athletic Association (NYSPHSAA) Final Four two years ago, and for him to possibly cap off his career at home with that kind of performance filled Bennett with pride.
“It means the world to me,” Bennett said. “He’s such a hard worker, and he’s an even better kid, and all he wants to do is lift up his teammates, practice really hard, and win. He’s always getting double-teamed, triple-teamed, he’s the focus of every team that we play. But there’s something to be said about senior night and he was not going to be denied. … But what set him apart tonight was his activity. On the offensive glass, the second chance put backs, all those things just showed how much he wanted this, and I couldn’t be happier.”
Carlton Farmer had the next highest tally for Salamanca with 18 points on six 3-pointers. But perhaps the biggest X-factor for the Warriors was Brendon Ghani. He only netted four points, but it was the little things he did, like setting impeccable screens to free up Farmer on a number of his 3s, that made a major impact.
“He had four points, but he probably accounted for 24,” Bennett said. “His activity and his play off the ball (was great). He was hurt for a while in the middle of the season, he got sick at the beginning of the year, got sick again, … but he’s been dreaming about this year for his whole life. He really was not pleased with the way he played at Olean, and he had no excuses for it. He practiced his tail off the last two days, and he was great tonight.”
The regular season is now in the books for the Warriors and from here on out it is win or go home. Bennett, who was drenched by his players after the big win, wants them to remember that exact feeling as they embark into the postseason.
“We got out to a good start, we beat some good teams, and then we faced adversity,” Bennett said. “In order to get over adversity, no matter how much you talk about it, you got to get over the hump. You got to get that feeling of winning again. We have to capture that feeling in the locker room. … We have to get addicted to that over the next couple of weeks, and understand the amount of work and intensity and belief that it takes to get there. … As long as that’s there, we have a chance to do some great things.”
Salamanca finished the regular season with a 10-10 overall record and a 5-7 record in CCAA Div. I play.
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AT SALAMANCA
Southwestern (50)
Markham 8 7-12 27, Harris 3 1-2 7, Edwards 2 0-0 6, Caaaelman 2 0-0 4, Hooks 1 0-0 3, Brown 1 0-2 3. Totals: 17 8-16 50
Salamanca (62)
Bradley 9 3-4 21, Farmer 6 0-0 18, Hill 4 0-0 9, Maybee 2 3-6 7, Ghani 2 0-0 4, Farnum 1 0-0 3. Totals: 24 6-10 62
SW 18 23 33 50
Sala. 17 31 47 62
Three-point goals: SW 8 (Markham 4, Edwards 2, Hooks, Brown), Sala. 8 (Farmer 6, Hill, Farnum); Total fouls: SW 19, Sala. 15; Fouled out: Edwards (SW).
