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Avon shrugs off slow start, rallies to beat Aquinas

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Josh Harter, seen here in an earlier game, finished with 24 points, nine rebounds and eight assists to go with three charges taken on the defensive end to lead Avon past host Aquinas, 64-56. (Photo: STEVEN TWARDZIK)

By PAUL GOTHAM

ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Less than two minutes remained in Wednesday’s non-league matchup at the Wegman-Napier Athletic Center.

Host Aquinas had, for the moment, seemed to shift the game’s momentum as the Li’l Irish turned a nine-point deficit into a one-possession game in less than a minute and a half.

With a chance to tie the contest for the first time since midway through the third quarter, Christian “Noonie” McCullough drew a pair of defenders when he drove the lane. The junior guard delivered a pass to teammate Jah Breedlove waiting in the left corner. Breedlove took the pass and put the ball to the floor along the baseline where he was met by Avon’s Josh Harter.

The whistle blew upon contact. An offensive foul was called. Harter had drawn a charge and given the ball back to Avon.

The Riverhawks went on to outscore Aquinas 11-6 over the remaining 1:31 and secured a 64-56 victory.

“I was trying to make a play, do whatever it takes to win,” Harter said. “That’s honestly my mentality when I go out there. I know Jah wants to get to the rim. He was hurting us getting to the rim. It was just instincts honestly, getting to the spot.”

One trip down the floor later, Aquinas did tie the game at 53, but Harter’s play on the defensive end slowed a Li’l Irish offense that had produced points on five straight possessions and seven of 10 leading up to that sequence.

The effort tilted the game in favor of the Riverhawks, ranked No. 2 NYSSWA Class B.

He recently scored his 1,000th career point and became the all-time assist leader in Avon program history. He also holds the Section V single-game record for 3-pointers made. On Wednesday, Harter took three charges in the second half to lead an Avon defensive effort that helped the Riverhawks (10-1) win their 10th straight game.

“He’s in the right spot at the right time,” said Avon head coach Rob Fries who pointed to the overall impact of his senior guard. “When they’re making their run and we’re turning the ball over and they come out, we just say ‘Hey, you’ve got to face a little adversity.’ They’re right laser-focused. They don’t worry about it. Let’s move on to the next play.”

Harter converted a pair of free throws for the go-ahead points while teammate and cousin, Trevor Stroud followed with a 3-pointer that stretched the lead to five at 58-53. The duo shared game-high honors scoring 24 points apiece in the win.

“Those two, both of them, they’re winners,” Fries said. “They know how to play the game. They know what’s needed in big spots.”

Just as important for Fries were the efforts of Harter and Stroud in leading a defense that held Aquinas nearly 13 points under its season average of 69.

“Forever, they have worked on their skills. The thing that I’m most proud of is how much better they’ve gotten defensively. They put a lot of effort into it. They practice the right way every day, and they get other guys to practice the right way. They’re leaders. That’s what they do. They both make big plays.”

Mackie Terry opened the game’s scoring for Aquinas with back-to-back and-ones to give the Li’l Irish a 6-0 lead. Terry’s finish off a drive from the wing made it a 16-8 game in favor of favor of AQ heading into the second quarter. A baseline jumper from Breedlove followed by a Terry steal and layup early in the second quarter gave Aquinas its largest lead of the night at 22-11.

“We didn’t score very much early,” Fries said. “Scoring normally isn’t our issue. I knew at some point we would make a run. Sometimes, we settle for outside shots. Once we got a little bit more aggressive inside, we started to score.”

Stroud connected on a pair of threes and scored eight straight for the Riverhawks as the teams went into halftime tied at 24.

Harter went the length of the floor for a layup, and Stroud set up Connor Smith for a bucket to give Avon a 38-33 lead after three quarters of play. Smith hit a jumper and Stroud followed with a pair of free throws for a 49-40 Avon lead with 3:15 remaining in the game.

McCullough scored the next eight for Aquinas to pull the Li’l Irish within three at 51-48. McCullough’s 3-pointer tied the game at 53 with 1:21 left on the clock.

The loss was the third straight for Aquinas (7-4).

“I’ve got nothing but respect for those guys,” Aquinas head coach Jeff LaFave said of Avon. “Coach Fries, (Assistant) Coach (Brady) Sass the way they can get their kids to play it’s absolutely all about them. They did a great job.

“We are not finishing at the basket. We are not playing with any defensive energy.”

Harter had nine rebounds and eight assists in the win. Stroud finished with four rebounds and three assists. Smith accounted for six points and five rebounds while Ryan Hillman and Kal Dolgos both had four points and five rebounds. Brody McDowell added two points and six rebounds for the Riverhawks.

“I’m just glad we were able to get the opportunity to play them,” Harter said of the matchup with the Triple-A school. “They’re a good team. It could’ve gone either way, but we’re glad to get the win.”

McCullough and Terry led Aquinas with 20 points apiece. Breedlove added 10.

Aquinas travels for a 2:30 p.m. tip-off at Rochester Prep on Saturday.

Avon stays on the road for a Livingston County Athletic Association matchup at league rival Le Roy on Friday. A 7:00 p.m. start time is scheduled.

AVON (10-1)
Josh Harter 7 10-12 24, Kal Dolgos 2 0-0 4, Brody McDowell 0 2-2 2, Trevor Stroud 8 4-4 24, Ryan Hillman 1 2-2 4, Connor Smith 3 0-0 6 TOTALS 21 18-20 — 64

AQUINAS (7-4)
Trent Buttles 0 0-2 0, Christian McCullough 7 5-9 20, Mackie Terry 7 5-10 20, Derrion Battle 1 0-0 2, Jah Breedlove 4 2-4 10, Quante Gillians 1 2-2 4 TOTALS 20 15-27 — 56

AVON 8 16 14 26 — 64
AQUINAS 16 8 9 23 — 56

3-point goals: AVON 4 (Stroud 4); AQUINAS 1 (McCullough 1).

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