By DONOVAN MOFFAT
AVON, N.Y. — Being down at the half and being beaten on the defensive end did not keep the Avon boys’ basketball team from quitting.
The Braves went on a 22-7 run in the third quarter to take the lead and put the game out of reach.
After a slow start in the first half from Avon, Mynderse held senior Connor Taylor and junior Nick Rowland to five and eight points respectively in the first half.
The Blue Devils held the Braves to just seven points in the second quarter, led by seniors Darren Miller and Sal Franzone.
First basket of the second quarter belongs to Mynderse. Sal Franzone hits a tough shot from the elbow to give the Blue Devils a 19-17 lead. @PickinSplinters pic.twitter.com/HnECBRGCj3
— Donnie Moffat (@donniemoffat) January 9, 2019
Mynderse ended the first quarter and the start of the second quarter on an 11-3 run to give the Blue Devils a 23-17 lead midway through the second quarter.
Miller ended the half with 10 points and Franzone added eight points.
Inside pass to Zach Colvin is good. 23-19 Mynderse with 3:30 to go in the half. @PickinSplinters pic.twitter.com/qOx5PfySyZ
— Donnie Moffat (@donniemoffat) January 9, 2019
After two quick buckets by junior Griffin Herron and Miller to start the second half, Mynderse extended its lead to eight which was the largest lead of the game for the Blue Devils.
After that, the home team caught fire.
Zach Colvin extends the lead 36-32 with a putback. Avon is on a 12-0 run. @PickinSplinters pic.twitter.com/PZYy3u9MKU
— Donnie Moffat (@donniemoffat) January 9, 2019
The Braves scored 17 straight led by Taylor and junior Tyler Dailey before Mynderse was able to answer.
At the end of the third quarter, Avon had an eight-point lead and showed no signs of letting up.
“We came out of the half with a lot of energy,” Avon head coach Rob Fries said. “I thought we came out and pushed the ball a lot better in the second half.”
Avon held the Blue Devils to just 17 points in the second half.
“I have a good couple of veteran leaders in Nick and Connor and they are very good captains,” said Fries during his halftime pep talk to his team. “We talked more on making sure that we did a better job guarding and boxing out and making sure we ran the floor.”
Taylor finished with 18 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists. It was his sixth triple-double of the season including a quadruple-double (29 points/ 13 rebounds/ 12 assists/ 10 steals) in Avon’s win over Keshequa on December 21st.
“I think he got more aggressive and he is really hard to guard,” coach Fries said about his senior guard. “I think he gets a mindset that at times he wants to get guys involved and other times when he has to take more on himself.”
Avon took a 14-point lead midway through the fourth and were able to secure the victory with key shots and tough defense.
Avon’s Tyler Dailey hits clutch free throws under a minute to put the game out of reach. @PickinSplinters pic.twitter.com/vIRosoncvA
— Donnie Moffat (@donniemoffat) January 9, 2019
Rowland finished his night with 12 points and Dailey had 11.
Miller finished with a team-high 20 points and Franzone finished with eight points for Mynderse.
Other scorers: Avon- Padraig Coyne (8), Zach Colvin (6), Andrew Rowland (3). Mynderse- Jared King (6), Griffon Herron (5), Troy Kabat (3), Mike Bogart (3).
Leave a Reply