By PAUL GOTHAM
WEBSTER, N.Y. — Nate Hardy and Luke Insley led five in double figures as the Webster Schroeder Warriors erased a double-digit halftime deficit to beat the Monroe Redjackets, 85-77.
Hardy netted 10 and Insley seven in the third quarter when Schroeder outscored Monroe, 28-15 to pull within one point at 65-64.
“We needed that,” Schroeder head coach Matt Spadoni said. “I’m very proud of the whole team. It’s come around. Hopefully we can build from this.”
The win snapped a five-game losing streak which included a one-point loss to Gates-Chili and a double-overtime defeat at Hilton.
“We’ve been in some real tight games,” Spadoni added. “Our kids, being so young, they needed a win to prove to them that if they played hard and played together that they can win games.”
Ky’Mere Meeks and Colin Merkey put bookends on a decisive 8-1 run early in the fourth. Meeks scored inside for two of his 11 second-half points. Merkey converted the front end of a one-and-one to give Schroeder the lead at 69-68. Merkey’s second attempt found iron, but the Warriors hauled in the offensive rebound, and Merkey took advantage with a 3-pointer from the top of the key. Schroeder (4-9) had a lead it did not surrender.
JoJo Plummer followed with a wing drive, and Insley took a Merkey lead on the break and drilled a trey from the right wing for a 77-70 Warrior lead.
But Monroe (8-4) didn’t go away easily. Ty Glasgow found Jonathan Jones cutting in the lane for two to cut the deficit to one at 77-76. The Redjackets took a timeout with 1:36 on the clock.
“The feel was definitely that we can win the game,” Spadoni said of the discussion in the huddle. “We knew if we could continue to string stops together, two or three stop in a row, then we would have a chance to win.”
Schroeder’s defense had to slow Monroe’s long-range attack which saw five different players connect behind the 3-point arc in the first quarter alone. The Redjackets hit seven from long range on their way to a 50-36 lead at halftime.
“I don’t know if we’ve ever given up 50 points in a half in my life,” Spadoni said. “They shot great in the first half. I take nothing away from them. They shot great.
“We didn’t put a great hand up. We didn’t put pressure on them. So in the second half, I thought we got out a little bit and adjusted. I told the kids at halftime if we held them to under 15 in each quarter then we’d have a chance to win.”
The Warriors limited Monroe to one 3-pointer in the second half.
Hardy and Insley, a freshman, scored 16 apiece. Fellow freshman Meeks added 15. Plummer and Malachi Duval added 11 apiece. Merkey scored six.
Chris Gibson, Jr. paced Monroe with 20 points. The senior forward has scored 1,048 career points. Jones added 17. Devante Mateo had 13 and Glasgow 12.
Other scorers: Monroe – Chris Williams (2), Jo-Nathan Jones (2), Trevor Glasgow (4) and Giovanniel Santiago (7). Schroeder – Mike Northrup (3), Colin Donelley (2), Andrew Lake (2) and Josh Hauman (3).
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