By JOHN LIKANJE
ROCHESTER, N.Y. – Coming into Tuesday night’s matchup, Greece Athena boys’ basketball head coach Michael Setzer spent the previous days preparing his squad as much as he could. In practice, he emphasized what to do against Greece Odyssey’s zone defense and how to break down their offensive sets. Setzer was also ready for a grind-out, close game against a Leopards team ranked No. 11 in the NYSSWA Class B poll.
“We worked the ball around and then we attacked and we got layups and open threes,” Setzer said after his squad’s fourth straight victory.
The Greece Athena Trojans (5-1) came ready to play, defeating the Greece Odyssey Leopards (4-1), 61-38.
“I figured get them to get rid of the ball early and get them in spots where they don’t want to be,” Setzer said after his squad forced 21 turnovers. “I thought we did a really good job of that.
“They started trying to hit home run passes and we were able to rotate and get deflections,” he continued. “It started with ball pressure and how we rotate on that middle and back line.”
The duo of senior guard Kelvin Reaves Junior and junior guard Melvin Council Junior, also known as “The Kelvin And Melvin Show”, combined to score 31 points. Council scored 12 of his 18 points in the first half on four layups, a three-pointer from the left corner and made a free throw as the Trojans led, 43-23, at halftime.
“Melvin’s a tough cover,” Setzer evaluated about his junior guard’s performance tonight. “He can make threes and he can beat you off the dribble.”
Reaves netted 13 points, including seven in the first quarter on a couple of layups, a floater, and converted a three-point play.
The Trojans took advantage of huge runs in the first half to get to a sizable lead. In the second quarter, Council and junior guard DeAndre Newsome scored a combined seven points as part of an 8-0 run for a 43-20 edge. In the first quarter, Reaves, senior forward Isaiah Brock, and senior center Johnny Salone went for 13 points on a 17-0 run to give the Trojans a 20-7 lead.
Brock (9), Austin Brown (8), Newsome (6), Salone (4), and Terrell Wilson Junior (3) rounded out the scoring for the Trojans.
For the Leopards, junior forward Dylan Kolmetz scored a team-high eight points off the bench.
“The scoreboard is not going to show how good Odyssey is,” Setzer complimented about the Leopards. “I think they’re going to make a sectional run in their class again.”
Romell Griffin (7), Travon Harper (6), Jaden Hartsfield (6), Ray Colbert (6), Korey Canton (3), and Aric Williams (2) rounded out the scoring for the Leopards.
Greece Athena will host Wilson Magnet Thursday night at 6:45 PM and Setzer is making sure his squad comes ready to play again and defend their home court.
“Wilson has a couple of losses but they’re against really good teams,” the Trojans head coach said about preparing for the Wilson Magnet Wildcats. “They’ve got a couple of great players as well.”
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