Undefeated and rarely challenged Team 518 had to do something they weren't used to doing - play from behind.
They stepped up to the challenge and used a stifling 2nd half defensive effort to slowly gain separation and take home the championship in Empire State Takeover's first summer with a 63-45 triumph over upstart Upstate Select.
Upstate Select came out firing on all cylinders, much like their semifinal win earlier in the day. Off the strength of the perimeter game, they jumped to a 7 point 1st half lead and were able to maintain that pace through much of the half. A quick Team 518 spurt to end the half knocked their deficit down to 2, 32-30, at halftime.
They carried the momentum into the 2nd half, where they began to lock up defensively and Saratoga Springs junior Adam Anderson and Guilderland senior Andrew Sischo took over on the offensive end. Anderson had a breakout day, scoring 12 of his game-high 20 points in the 2nd half. Sischo, the league MVP, had 11 in the 2nd half and finished with 19. After Canton junior Louden Porter got a fast break layup for Select, they were held at 34 for 6 minutes while 518 was able to grab the lead and extend it up to 11. A spurt in the final few minutes for 518, powered by a dominating presence on the boards, extended the lead to its final margin of 18.
Along with Anderson and Sischo, South Kortright junior Tyler Lamport added 10 points, all of them in the 1st half when Team 518 was having trouble getting things going offensively against a rare zone look from Select. Upstate Select made it to the finals despite only having won 3 games in the regular season. Including playoffs, they went 3-3 in the final 3 weeks after dropping 7 of their first 8 to start the season. Louden Porter (previously mentioned) paced Select with a season high 11 points. Cooperstown sophomore Tyler Bertram added 9, and Whitesboro senior Josh Gregory finished with 8 - all in the 1st half.
Team 518 came into the day banged up. Along with Kaden Baugh, their standout point guard headed to Vermont Academy in the fall who's been out for a month with a torn MCL, they were missing 1st team selection Zac O'Dell, a Schalmont senior who fractured his thumb at a football camp during the week. Ravena-Coeymans-Selkirk junior Chad Zeoli played with a non-shooting hand that had multiple fractures from an injury in a school summer league earlier in the week. Despite the injuries & inability to play, the FULL 518 roster attended playoffs yesterday to at least watch - true to the 'Team' on the back of their jerseys.
Team 518 got to the finals by way of a 66-36 dismantling of Man Up. After getting an early lead, Man Up fell victim to a long period of defensive dominance from Team 518, who turned that early deficit to a 29-14 halftime lead. It was a steady dose of Adam Anderson and Andrew Sischo again for 518 - Anderson's breakout offensive day started with a 19 point performance in the semifinals, and Sischo came through with 14 for the winners. Tyler Lamport again provided a 3rd scoring punch, adding 9. Man Up got 14 from Shaker senior Ben Diamond in the loss, and Johnstown senior Devin Boyle hit 3 threes and added 11. Man Up was only able to muster 4 two-point field goals in the game, in comparison to 7 made threes.
Their opponent, Upstate Select, got to the finals with the hottest shooting performance of the summer. In a 92-68 victory over Rising Stars, who came into the day with the 2nd best record in the league, Select drilled a season-high 18 threes as a team. Utica Proctor senior Dejae Johnson had his best shooting game of the summer, drilling 7 of those threes and finishing with a game high 29 points. The threes came in bulk from others as well. Josh Gregory, a 6'4" young senior with a quickly budding game, knocked down 5 threes of his own and added 17 points. Johnson City junior Patrick Garey added 15 points, 9 coming from beyond the arc, and Tyler Bertram finished off the 3 point total with 3 threes and 13 points. Herkimer junior Andrew Mason contributed double digits as well, with 12 points in the win. All 5 players in uniform for Rising Stars contributed double digits, led by Matthew Higgins, a South Glens Falls senior who's proven to be one of the most consistent players in the league. Higgins finished with 20 points on the day, hitting 4 threes in the process.
In the lone quarterfinal, Man Up held off Bellevue to take away a 61-59 victory. The game was close throughout, with Bellevue holding a 3 point halftime lead. Bellevue got the ball off a missed free throw with 2 seconds left, but a desperation heave at the buzzer went begging. Logan O'Donnell, a 6'10" junior at John Jay, led Man Up with 17 points in the win. The aforementioned Devin Boyle and Hoosick Falls senior Connor McCart added 13 points apiece. Bellevue was led in the loss by always consistent Tyler Champagne, a rising senior at Mount Anthony Union (VT), with 19 points. Cobleskill-Richmondville senior Keenan Loder added 16 points, and Leominster (MA) senior Jamie Gonzalez finished with 15.
Full box scores below. All-star teams coming out in the next 2 days!
Quarterfinals
Man Up 61, Bellevue 59
Man Up (3-10): Ben Diamond 1-2-5, Kevin Townes Jr. 2-2-7, Justin Houck 3-6, Connor McCart 6-13, Devin Boyle 5-13, Logan O'Donnell 8-1-17. Totals: 25-5-61.
Bellevue (5-8): Jamie Gonzalez 6-15, Tyler Champagne 8-1-19, Damon Burgess 1-2-4, Aram Alaxanian 2-5, Keenan Loder 7-16. Totals: 24-3-59.
3-Point Field Goals: Man Up 6 (Boyle 3, Diamond, Townes Jr., McCart), Bellevue 8 (Gonzalez 3, Champagne 2, Loder 2, Alaxanian).
Free Throws: Man Up 5/7 (Diamond 2/2, Townes Jr. 2/2, O'Donnell 1/2, McCart 0/1), Bellevue 3/6 (Burgess 2/2, Champagne 1/2, Alaxanian 0/2).
Semifinals
Team 518 66, Man Up 36
Team 518 (13-0): Colby Fancher 1-2, Adam Anderson 7-3-19, Kevin Murray 1-2, Ryan Blair 1-2, Tyler Lamport 3-1-9, Chad Zeoli 3-6, Joe Werner 3-6, Alex Skaine 3-6, Andrew Sischo 6-1-14. Totals: 28-5-66.
Man Up (3-11): Ben Diamond 4-4-14, Kevin Townes Jr. 2-6, Devin Boyle 3-2-11, Connor McCart 1-1-3, Logan O'Donnell 1-2. Totals: 11-7-36.
3-Point Field Goals: Team 518 5 (Anderson 2, Lamport 2, Sischo), Man Up 7 (Boyle 3, Diamond 2, Townes Jr. 2).
Free Throws: Team 518 5/12 (Anderson 3/6, Lamport 1/2, Sischo 1/4), Man Up 7/12 (Diamond 4/6, Boyle 2/2, McCart 1/2, Lapinel 0/2).
Upstate Select 92, Rising Stars 68
Upstate Select (4-9): Dejae Johnson 11-29, Patrick Garey 6-15, Louden Porter 3-6, Tyler Bertram 5-13, Josh Gregory 6-17, Andrew Mason 6-12. Totals: 37-0-92.
Rising Stars (8-5): Jared D'Aloia 4-11, Matt Higgins 7-2-20, Adam Jaquish 6-12, Taylor Slattery 6-12, Anthony DeBonis 4-5-13. Totals: 27-7-68.
3-Point Field Goals: Upstate Select 18 (Johnson 7, Gregory 5, Garey 3, Bertram 3), Rising Stars 7 (Higgins 4, D'Aloia 3).
Free Throws: Upstate Select 0/1 (Johnson 0/1), Rising Stars 7/13 (DeBonis 5/8, Higgins 2/4, Jaquish 0/1).
Finals
Team 518 63, Upstate Select 45
Team 518 (14-0): Adam Anderson 6-6-20, Ryan Blair 1-2, Tyler Lamport 2-5-10, Joe Werner 3-6, Alex Skaine 3-6, Andrew Sischo 8-3-19. Totals: 23-14-63.
Upstate Select (4-10): Dejae Johnson 3-8, Patrick Garey 1-3, Louden Porter 5-11, Derek Newman 1-2, Tyler Bertram 4-9, Josh Gregory 3-8, Andrew Mason 2-4. Totals: 19-45.
3-Point Field Goals: Team 518 3 (Anderson 2, Lamport), Upstate Select 7 (Johnson 2, Gregory 2, Garey, Porter, Bertram).
Free Throws: Team 518 14/24 (Anderson 6/8, Lamport 5/7, Sischo 3/7, Werner 0/2), Upstate Select 0/3 (Johnson 0/2, Porter 0/1).
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