Vikings Pillage Red Rams; Take Class A Chip
GLENS FALLS, NY - When the unranked Nichols School Vikings went up against the undefeated Jamesville DeWitt Red Rams (NYC Hoops #1 ranked in Westchester/Upstate), most would have predicted a rout but few would have foreseen that Jamesville would be on the receiving end of it. The 22-7 Vikings were one of the few as they handed the Red Rams 25-1 their first and probably most painful lost on Saturday as they overwhelmed them, 65-43, to win the Class AA Federation Chip.
Clearly the Nichols School had this all mapped out. On Friday night, the Vikings blew through L.I. Lutheran in the semifinals, 85-66 and then walloped the Red Rams, a team that lost to Lutheran last year at this very point.
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Starting in the first quarter, Will Regan (21 points & 12 rebounds) got the Vikings going stroking it from three and they maintained an 8-4 lead early. 6-foot-6 sophomore, Tyler Cavanaugh (11 points), would score for J-D and it appeared as if it would be a game. With 3:21 remaining in the first, a dunk by Dajuan Coleman (12 points & 11 rebounds) would tie the game at 9 and actually go up by a point late. But that would be all she wrote as and up n' under by Regan followed by a bucket by 6-fott-2 sophomore Stan Wier (17 points) would send the Vikings into the second quarter up, 20-14.
Demetrius Mitchell (2 points & 5 assists) would kick off the quarter with a deuce for the Red Rams but the Nichols School played a very physical game coupled with superior ball movement. With leadership from senior PG Ron Canestro (23 points & 5 assists), the Vikings stayed in front of the Red Rams throughout the quarter, going into the locker room ahead 31-36 at the half.
Wier opened the half netting a trey but Lamar Kearse (7 points)and Jailaan Kinsey scored back to back. Suddenly, the Vikings lead was only 36-32 with 4:27 left in the third. The Vikings remained poised and ran their sets effortlessly.
Regan would turn out to be a tough cover for Coleman due to his ability to shoot from the perimeter along with his agility. With 3:21, an and-1 by Canestro capped off a 7-0 Vikings run that put them up 43-32.
6-foot-4 senior, Zach Firestone(9 points), tried to fan the Red Rams flames knocking down back-to-back buckets with 1:28 left in the quarter but Canestro would responds giving the Nichols School a 49-43 lead as the 4th quarter began.
The fourth quarter would be all about the Nichols School as Canestro, Wier and Regan totally dominated the Red Rams pushing the Vikings lead to 16 points with 2:34 left in regulation. With 1:12 remaining in the game and down by 20 points , J-D head coach Bob McKinney subbed out signaling defeat.
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