PLATTSBURGH — The Moriah boys’ basketball team, true to form, didn’t back down from the No. 1-ranked Class C team in the state on Saturday afternoon.
In the end, however, the task was too tall for the Vikings, who dropped a 79-58 contest to Section II champion Berne-Knox-Westerlo in a regional final at Clinton Community College.
Led by talented 6-6 junior Shane Kirker Jr.’s 36 points, the Bulldogs (24-0) advanced to the NYSPHSAA Class C Final Four. Section VII-champion Moriah, meanwhile, ended its season with an 18-6 mark.
“They were big, fast and skilled,” Moriah coach Don Tesar Jr. said. “We tried everything we could to try and slow them down.”
Kirker Jr. weaved his way through Moriah’s interior defense and capped off his performance with a 14-point fourth quarter as the Bulldogs scored 26 points in the stanza to pull away.
“No. 3 was tough,” Tesar Jr. said. “He’s listed as 6-6, but seemed even bigger than that out there.”
It didn’t start out well for the Vikings. Moriah players had trouble hitting their shots in the first half and only Chase McGinness was able to find the range for the Vikings as he scored 15 of his team’s 21 points in a 37-21 deficit after two.
“Chase carried us in the first half,” Tesar Jr. said.
Moriah then came out strong to start the third and managed to cut its deficit down to seven at one time.
A key in the run was 5-7 Jake Mascarenas, who battled the Bulldogs hard inside and had a team-high nine rebounds for the game.
“I wish Jake was 6-0,” Tesar Jr. said. “When he gets into it like that, everyone follows. We felt we needed to win the rebounding battle, and at times we were able to do so.”
But B-K-W, which won its first Section II title in 46 years, regained the momentum with the help of reserve Jayden Buie, who nailed three three-pointers in the second half.
“Everything started falling for them,” Tesar Jr. said
The game was an emotional one and heated at times, with a total of three technicals and a flagrant foul being called.
“Neither team wanted to lose,” Tesar Jr. said. “Both teams played with great energy. It wasn’t just the players who got caught up in the emotion, but the coaches as well.”
Dayne Coates added 18 points for the Bulldogs, while Buie was a third B-K-W player in double figures with 11.
Moriah standout Cooper Allen, who couldn’t find his shot in the first half while being held scoreless, drove to the basket hard in the second half and finished with a team-high 24 points, including 12-of-13 from the foul line.
Chase McGinness added 17 points, while Mascarenas added eight points to go along with his nine rebounds, and Joe Pelkey chipped in with eight rebounds of his own for the senior-laden Moriah team.
“I can’t ask for a better group,” Tesar Jr, the first-year varsity coach, said. “I’m very close with this team, especially the seniors. I’ve been with them ever since they were in sixth grade.
“I’m extremely proud of our kids.”
—
BKW 79, Moriah 58
BKW (79)
Buie 4-0-11, Coates 6-3-18, Kirker Jr., 14-7-36, Dwyer 1-0-3, G. Wright 1-0-2, A. Wright 1-0-2, Terrell 2-2-7, Simpson 0-0-0, Landrum 0-0-0. Totals- 29-12-79.
Moriah (58)
Mascarenas 3-0-8, Allen 5-12-24, Whitman 1-0-2, Pelkey 2-0-4, C. McGinness 6-2-17, B. McGinness 1-1-3. Huchro 0-0-0, White 0-0-0, Sargent 0-0-0, Brassard 0-0-0. Totals- 18-15-58.
Halftime- B-K-W, 37-21.
3 point goals- B-K-W (9) Buie 3, Coates 3, Kirker Jr., Terrell, Dwyer. MCS (7) C. McGinness 3, Allen 2, Mascarenas 2.