By PAUL GOTHAM
Through the haze of a 4-7 start, Jack Leasure was able to see the potential of his McQuaid Jesuit Knights. Rather than making drastic changes designed to shock his team out of a perceived slump, the fifth-year coach relied upon his players and their willingness to see the possibilities.
“All along we saw all the pieces that we had,” Leasure said Thursday by phone. “The upside was there. Really what’s been the key is the kids just being mentally tough enough and resilient to find a way to enjoy each other and play with joy throughout that process.”
Winning 12 of 13, McQuaid takes the court Saturday in the NYSPHSAA Class AA semi-finals.
“Simple things like sharing the ball and just playing as a team,” Leasure added. “We started to do those things and our overall play started to shine.”
The Knights endured an early-season schedule which included road contests against perennial post-season contenders Niagara Falls (VI) and Canisius (VI) as well as a Christmas tournament in Elmira where they fell to the host and to Landon Prep out of the Baltimore-Washington D.C. area. Mixed in among those games outside the Rochester area were a pair of setbacks to RCAC rival Monroe.
Background reads: McQuaid moves on to semi-final
Background reads: Half Hollow Hills East’s Savion Lewis up to the challenge
Background reads: Savion Lewis sparks Hills East to LI Class AA crown
Background reads: McQuaid makes late charge to grab AA crown
“There are plenty of teams that take that approach, but then they never get to the other side of it because they fall apart before they get there,” Leasure said of embracing the rigorous schedule. “You are forced to come together as a team and learn lessons early.”
In mid-January they fell to Rice Memorial from Burlington,Vermont in a game played at Springfield, Massachusetts.
“For a while we weren’t making each other better really. The guys on the floor were not complimenting each other. They were playing as individuals. We needed glue within that.”
McQuaid’s season, though, pivoted in little over 48 hours in late January. Coming off a win over RCAC rival East, the Knights handed state-ranked Leadership Academy its first loss of the season. Two days later, Leasure’s squad beat eventual Class AA No. 1 seed Fairport in overtime. It was the start of seven straight wins.
“We made some adjustments in lineups, but we also started to learn how to play together and how to play better defensively together.”
McQuaid advanced to its sixth state semi-final with a win over Niagara Falls in last weekend’s NYS Far West Regional. It will be the Knights first appearance in the final four since 2003 when Leasure along with assistant coaches Marty O’Sullivan and Ryan Pettinella were a part of a state champion.
What: NYSPHSSA Class AA semi-final.
Where: Floyd L. Maines Arena – Binghamton, N.Y.
When: Saturday, March 17th 12:45 PM.
Who: McQuaid (16-8) vs. Half Hollow Hills East – XI (22-3).
What’s at stake: A spot in Sunday’s championship against the Liverpool-III (24-0) vs. Mount Vernon-I (23-2) winner.
Players to Watch for Half Hollow Hills: Julien Crittendon Sr. 17.4 ppg, Shane Dean Jr. 6.1 ppg, Savion Lewis Sr. 30.8 ppg, Kenny Mathurin Sr. 8.0 ppg and Kendall Nero-Clark Sr. 10.3 ppg.
Players to Watch for McQuaid: Anthony Iglesia Sr. G 13.4 ppg, Kobe Long So. G 13.8 ppg, Josh Purcell Sr. G 5.9 ppg, Jermaine Taggart So. G 17.4 ppg and Connor Zamiara Jr. F 8.7 ppg.
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