BINGHAMTON — Bolton built a lead and fought off a tenacious Bridgehampton 62-50 in a NYSPHSAA Class D boys’ basketball semifinal Saturday in Binghamton.
With the win, the Eagles (25-1) advanced to the state championship for the first time in school history.
We kind of came out with a game plan, and we stuck to it for most of the game,” Bolton head coach Cody Kober said. “(Bridgehampton) did rattle us a little bit with that pressure. We knew it was going to be coming but overall, getting it over half court and just trying to utilize the foul line still didn’t hit as much as we usually do. We knew they were going to come out fired up, and we just wanted to make sure we matched their intensity.”
Bolton went on runs throughout the game to get distance.
It started with an 8-0 run in the first quarter to build an early lead they would relinquish only once when Bridgehampton at 20-19.
Once the Eagles grabbed the lead back at 23-20, there was no looking back.
“I feel like, obviously, shooting so many shots of practice, you know, a lot of 3-pointers,” Bolton’s Jaxon Egloff said. “You know, we know that, especially scouting their team that didn’t have a really big guy to guard our big man, so we knew he was gonna be able to take it out to us, and we’re gonna be able to knock shots all across the board.”
And that’s what the Eagles did while the Killer Bees were unable to match shot for shot.
“We went to Old Reliable with Jackson Eagloff. He banged down a couple long 3-pointers, got to the rim, got some, got to the foul line a couple times, and that kept us moving along,” Kober said.
“That opened up Liam Foy down low. They can’t double team Liam and leave Jackson open or Jace (Hubert) open. Will Hens, which is what they were doing. Will would come in at the high post and dishing down. And I got to give it credit, even though he missed a few layups. Andy Morehouse and Jacob French coming down the floor, they made Bridgehampton honor them.”
Two times the Killer Bees cut the deficit to four points, but Bolton had key answers.
Near the end of the third quarter, the Eagles held a 12-point lead at 41-29. Early in the fourth, Bridgehampton rallied to make it 44-40.
With the chance of Bridgehampton to make it a one-possession game, Egloff brought the ball down the court and hit a big 3-pointer to put the lead at 47-40 to stop the run.
“When we started to extend the lead, I was feeling more comfortable and knowing that they had a few guys in foul trouble,” Kober said. “I forgot their names but (Bridgehampton’s Jai Feaster and Alex Davis), they were both banging down threes, and they kept it close, kind of like in that last game, (against Heuvelton).
“But I mean, Bridgehampton’s a nine-time state champion, and they’ve got a hall of fame coach. So just for our team to stand up to that from our little small town of Bolton Landing — we graduate 15 kids this year. I mean, that’s a huge statement right there.”
The Eagles gradually put the game out of reach as Egloff and Foy visited the free throw line to ice the game and set up a date with Section III’s Sackets Harbor in the championship.
“The biggest thing for our team this year has just been mental strength,” Hubert said. “It comes down to the mental struggle that will come and just trusting in each other and trust our coaches right now.”
Tip off is set for 10 a.m. as Bolton will look to win its first state championship and join Moriah, the only other Section VII school to win a state title.
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Bolton 62, Bridgehampton 50
Bolton (62)
French 1-0-2, Egloff 7-6-23, Hubert 8-1-17, Hens 2-0-4, Foy 5-6-16. TOTALS: 23-13-62
Bridgehampton (50)
Davison IV 2-0-5, Turner 4-2-10, Harding 4-0-8, Feaster 4-0-8, Davis 7-4-17, Johnson 0-1-1. TOTALS: 19-8-50
Halftime- Bolton, 30-25
3 point goals- Bolton (3) Egloff 3. Bridgehampton (4) Davison IV, Davis 3