Playing for the first two weeks, in front of their largest crowd of the season, with arguably their toughest opponent may have scared most teams.
Most teams don’t have the experience or depth of the Fairport boys basketball team.
The Red Raiders staked a claim as the top team in Section 5 as they defeated Bishop Kearney 59-45 in front a sell-out crowd on Thursday at Fairport. Playing for the first time since they narrowly defeated Webster Schroeder 67-62 on Dec. 19, never trailed as they improved to 8-0 on the season.
“It was one of my concerns, feeling like we could compete with them, so to hit some early was a good feeling,” said Scott Fitch, Red Raiders head coach. “I thought we didn’t get flustered and we didn’t get scared. We finished well, which is a sign of experience.”
Fairport used outstanding three-point shooting to build a 12-point lead after the first quarter. Brian Sortino and Tyler LePore hit threes on the first two possession of the game for the Red Raiders, part of the seven the team hit during the game.
Joe Masino knocked down a three-pointer to put Fairport ahead 24-10 early in the second quarter before a layup by Kearney guard Antwoine Anderson cut the deficit to 24-18 with 3:23 left in the first half. Sortino hit a three to put the Red Raiders back up nine.
“We knew that because this was such a big game we were going to have to shoot the lights out,” said Sortino, who finished with a game-high 18 points. “We wanted to get open looks, and that’s what we were able to do.”
Thomas Bryant, who led the Kings with 13 points, brought Kearney within 30-25 to open the second half. The Kings would not get any closer the second half.
LePore knocked down a three-pointer to culminate a 10-0 run and put Fairport ahead 40-25. The Red Raiders defense put the game away in the second away, limiting the Kings to only eight points.
“We stood around too much and didn’t do what we are supposed to do,” said Jon Boon, Kearney head coach. “It’s been that way for a while now.”
While Fairport was strong from the outside, Eli Jones led the team in the paint recording 12 points. Playing without Syracuse-bound center Chinoso Obokoh, the Kings struggled to score points in the paint and keep up with the Red Raiders.
“We tried to double team (Bryant) and I think that took them out of their game,” Jones said. “(Anderson) is a great finisher, and we keyed on him. We tried to shut him down, and I think we were able to stop him.”
Kearney is back in action this weekend when they play Mt. Vernon at West Point, while the Red Raiders host Rush-Henrietta at 7:45 p.m. on Wednesday.
Playing for the first two weeks, in front of their largest crowd of the season, with arguably their toughest opponent may have scared most teams.
Most teams don’t have the experience or depth of the Fairport boys basketball team.
The Red Raiders staked a claim as the top team in Section 5 as they defeated Bishop Kearney 59-45 in front a sell-out crowd on Thursday at Fairport. Playing for the first time since they narrowly defeated Webster Schroeder 67-62 on Dec. 19, never trailed as they improved to 8-0 on the season.
“It was one of my concerns, feeling like we could compete with them, so to hit some early was a good feeling,” said Scott Fitch, Red Raiders head coach. “I thought we didn’t get flustered and we didn’t get scared. We finished well, which is a sign of experience.”
Fairport used outstanding three-point shooting to build a 12-point lead after the first quarter. Brian Sortino and Tyler LePore hit threes on the first two possession of the game for the Red Raiders, part of the seven the team hit during the game.
Joe Masino knocked down a three-pointer to put Fairport ahead 24-10 early in the second quarter before a layup by Kearney guard Antwoine Anderson cut the deficit to 24-18 with 3:23 left in the first half. Sortino hit a three to put the Red Raiders back up nine.
“We knew that because this was such a big game we were going to have to shoot the lights out,” said Sortino, who finished with a game-high 18 points. “We wanted to get open looks, and that’s what we were able to do.”
Thomas Bryant, who led the Kings with 13 points, brought Kearney within 30-25 to open the second half. The Kings would not get any closer the second half.
LePore knocked down a three-pointer to culminate a 10-0 run and put Fairport ahead 40-25. The Red Raiders defense put the game away in the second away, limiting the Kings to only eight points.
“We stood around too much and didn’t do what we are supposed to do,” said Jon Boon, Kearney head coach. “It’s been that way for a while now.”
While Fairport was strong from the outside, Eli Jones led the team in the paint recording 12 points. Playing without Syracuse-bound center Chinoso Obokoh, the Kings struggled to score points in the paint and keep up with the Red Raiders.
“We tried to double team (Bryant) and I think that took them out of their game,” Jones said. “(Anderson) is a great finisher, and we keyed on him. We tried to shut him down, and I think we were able to stop him.”
Kearney is back in action this weekend when they play Mt. Vernon at West Point, while the Red Raiders host Rush-Henrietta at 7:45 p.m. on Wednesday.
