By Paul Gotham
ROCHESTER, N.Y. — LaShard Lowry, Jr. scored 16 of his game-high 26 points in the fourth quarter as Fairport boys’ basketball defeated host McQuaid Jesuit, 57-46 in non-league action, Monday night.
Fouled on a 3-point attempt, Lowry converted all three of those charity tosses to give the Red Raiders a lead they did not surrender at 42-40 with 4:53 remaining in the game.
Next trip down the floor, the junior guard grabbed a loose ball along the left side and finished at the rim. Fairport went on to score 12 straight points.
“It feels great,” he said after the win. “I got to thank my teammates because they get me open. They (McQuaid) were playing a zone, and I just worked off my teammates. I know they will find me and then trusting in my shooting that I’ve been working on in the off-season. Just trusted in my teammates in general.”
He hit a three-pointer along the right wing then slipped ahead of the McQuaid defense for two more before converting 4-of-6 free throws to put the game away.
LaShard Lowry grabs the loose ball and finishes. @FCSDSports 44-40. pic.twitter.com/tU99Lk1yIn
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) January 30, 2024
LaShard Lowry has scored eight straight. pic.twitter.com/vOMQZ4m7T2
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) January 30, 2024
Lowry’s fourth-quarter surge came after the Red Raiders (12-4) allowed a double-digit to slip away.
Drew Sisson’s bucket midway through the third quarter made it a 33-22 game.
McQuaid answered with a 10-3 run, and Isaiah Anderson drove the lane for a basket then followed on the next possession with a pair of free throws to give the Jesuit Knights a 38-37 lead early in the fourth.
It was McQuaid’s first lead since 6-4 in the first frame.
“We knew they weren’t going away,” said Fairport head coach Scott Fitch.
After four lead changes, Fairport forced two turnovers and did not allow McQuaid a second shot on any of its next seven possessions.
“We started getting some stops and then LaShard started cashing in offensively for us,” Fitch said.
The junior guard scored on seven of Fairport’s last 11 trips down the floor.
“Last year, he didn’t know when to take over or when not to take over and would get impatient sometimes,” Fitch said. “Right now, he has great patience. He has a great basketball IQ. He understands the game. He wants to be a team player. He’s a kid that you love to coach because he’s figuring it out.”
The win was Fairport’s third in the past four games and came after the Red Raiders defeated Hilton in overtime on Friday.
“It was an emotional game and draining,’ Fitch said of the win over the Cadets. “I’m proud of the kids for fighting back. I thought we played with pretty good energy all night even though it wasn’t pretty, sometimes. The fight was there.”
McQuaid (5-10) scored seven straight midway through the second quarter to trim a nine-point deficit to two.
Jaiyden Jones scored seven straight in the third quarter when the Jesuit Knights erased the double-digit deficit.
“As a group we have shown flashes throughout the year where all five guys know what we are looking for offensively and how to work hard for it as a group,” said McQuaid head coach Jack Leasure. “During that stretch we did that, and we strung together stops and defensive rebounds. Those stretches aren’t consistent enough for us yet to win a championship.”
Jones finished with 18 points and 12 rebounds. Anderson had 14 points and seven assists. Quinn Wilson accounted for seven points and 10 rebounds.
Aidan White hit four 3-pointers and had 20 points for Fairport which played without senior starter Will Stanek.
The contest was the second annual Slam Dunk Cancer Game with all proceeds going to the American Cancer Society.
“This game has a little bit more meaning than the usual,” said Fitch whose sister (Mandy) and mom (Sue) have both survived cancer.
Leasure lost his mother to cancer prior to last basketball season.
“It means a lot to be able to work with Coach Fitch and do something to create awareness, raise money and hopefully create a sense of urgency in our younger generation to continue to work towards fighting against cancer.”
Donations to the event can be made here.
FAIRPORT
Nick Smith 0 0-0 0, LaShard Lowry 7 9-11 26, Landon Brunken 1 0-0 2, Mateo Palleschi 0 2-2 2, Jon Roessel 0 0-0 0, Sam Roselli 0 0-0 0, Drew Sisson 1 0-0 2, Alex Grejda 2 0-0 5, Aidan White 7 2-2 20, Marques Garrett 0 0-0 0 TOTALS 18 13-15 — 57
McQUAID JESUIT
Jaiyden Jones 8 2-5 19, Lucas Wachter 0 0-0 0, Quinn Wilson 2 3-4 7, Isaiah Anderson 3 7-17 14, Henry Fox 3 0-1 7, Michael Payne 0 0-0 0 TOTALS 16 12-27 — 46
FAIRPORT 15 12 10 20 — 57
McQUAID 9 11 14 12 — 46
3-point goals — Fairport 8 (Lowry 3, Grejda 1, White 4); McQuaid 2 (Anderson 1, Fox 1).
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