Both the Christian Brothers Academy and East Syracuse-Minoa boys basketball teams come into their meeting this Thursday night in great spirits. Both won on Tuesday night, in wildly varying circumstances.
CBA got no time to rest from its Jamesville-DeWitt/Bishop Ludden gauntlet from last weekend, having to go to Fowler for its third tough game in five nights. Somehow, the Brothers had enough to squeak past the Falcons 55-51, mostly on the strength of what it did in the third quarter. When Fowler raced out to a 23-15 halftime lead, it sure looked like CBA had worn itself out in the J-D and Ludden games. But it all turned around in that crucial third period, when the Brothers could not miss in the course of a 26-12 outburst. Fowler absorbed the blow and tried to rally down the stretch, but CBA kept matching them to stay ahead. Goodman worked inside for 16 points, while Thompson regained his shooting touch for 15 points as Kevin Yarnell added 11 points. Both Thompson and Pat Wiese (six points) hit on a pair of 3-pointers. Fowler’s Chris Gilkes, who had 22 points, nearly pushed his team to victory. As this was going on, ESM, once 0-9, rattled off its third consecutive victory against Phoenix, flying past the Firebirds 57-44. Not known for its defensive prowess, the Spartans put it on display here, especially in the second quarter, when it held Phoenix to a scant five points and built a 37-15 halftime edge. Cruising in from there, the Spartans saw Tyler Dattmore put up 19 points, with Zach Placito adding nine points. Zach Whedon and Greg Raab each finished with six points. Other than Jon North, who had 24 points, no one produced much on Phoenix’s behalf.