In an impressive performance, Comsewogue senior Hayden Morris-Gray was a one-man wrecking crew against William Floyd in a non-league matchup Friday, Dec. 2.
Morris-Gray dropped 49 points on his home court, sinking 11 three-pointers, 14 free throws and a field goal. His electric performance topped the scoring charts with 49 points, leading the Warriors in their 73-68 victory. The win lifts the Warriors to 1-1 in their division.
Port Jefferson’s girls’ basketball squad, although short on roster depth with only seven players suited, are long on talent when the Royals made short work of Miller Place in a non-league home game with a 67-34 victory Dec. 10.
Junior point guard Lola Idir led the way for the Royals seeming to score three pointers at will, nailing seven treys a field goal and three from the free throw line for a team high of 28 points.
Senior teammates Annie Maier hit two triples and six field goals for 18 points, and Abigail Rolfe banked 9. Miller Place seniors Emma LaMountain scored 14 and Lauren Molinaro netted 13.
The win lifts the Royals to 3-1 while Miller Place searches for that elusive first win in this early season.
— All photos by Bill Landon
Mount Sinai protecting a two-point lead over Islip with 11 seconds left in regulation went to Mount Sinai junior Kylie Budke who drained a three pointer from the corner to ice the game giving the Mustangs a 50-45 win in a League VI matchup at home Feb. 19.
Mount Sinai junior Casey Campo topped the scoring chart for the Mustangs with 8 field goals a triple and 4 from the line for a team high 23 points. Budke followed with 2 treys and 5 from the floor for 16 and Brielle Williams and senior Makayla Hartcom banked 4 points apiece.
The win lifts the Mustangs to 2-2 dealing Islip their first loss of the season falls to 4-1. Mount Sinai has two games remaining in this Covid shortened season before playoffs begin Feb. 26. Photos by Bill Landon
Chris Crespo scores 16 points in victory
By Jim Ferchland
Senior guard Chris Crespo was the catalyst for Smithtown West in a 57-42 victory over Newfield Jan. 23. He had 16 points on the night, scoring seven of the Bulls’ 19 first-quarter points.
Newfield head coach Anthony Agostino said Crespo made solid plays for his team all game.
“He makes everybody else around him better,” Agostino said. “He sacrifices his own individual points to get the ball where it needs to be. That’s why he’s a scholarship player.”
Crespo said he loves getting everyone involved in the game.
“I’m pretty sure every single one of my points were a layup or a foul shot,” Crespo said. “We hit a lot of threes today. When everyone is involved like that, it makes things a lot easier. It definitely feels good to get the ball moving and everyone scoring.”
Three players scored in double figures for the Bulls. Matt Behrens and Michael Gannon each added 11 points and combined for five 3-pointers. The team made eight triples on the night.
With the win, Smithtown West improves to 8-1 in League III, just behind undefeated Half Hollow Hills East, which outscored the Bulls in the county finals last year.
“It’s really about playing good basketball and us being able to hit our stride toward the playoffs,” said Smithtown West head coach Mike Agostino, Anthony’s brother. “We played well. The core kids who got a lot of playing time played great.”
Senior Paul VonVoight contributed for nearly half of Newfield’s points. He led all scorers with 20. He got rolling in the fourth quarter, knocking down three 3-pointers to help Newfield outscore the Bulls 16-6, but it wasn’t enough.
Newfield falls to 2-7 in League III play and 4-11 overall. The Wolverines have lost three of their last four games. Despite the loss, Tony Agostino took some positives from the game.
“My guys fought till the very end,” he said. “Our goal was to keep them under 59 points. They scored 57, so we achieved one of our goals.”
Crespo said Newfield sat in their zone defense, which Smithtown West is used to seeing, so his team exploited that.
“Teams tend to struggle when playing us man-to-man,” Crespo said. “We have a lot of weapons. When teams play zone, we like to shoot threes. That’s what I like about us. When you play us, we play defense as hard as we can. We play a team-oriented style of basketball. In Suffolk County, we are a dominant force. That’s why we’ve won back-to-back league titles.”
Newfield is scheduled to play at Huntington (2-7, 3-12) Jan. 26 at 6:30 p.m. Smithtown West will host crosstown rival Smithtown East (3-6, 6-9) the same day at 5:45 p.m.
