Haddam-Killingworth got spectacular play from sophomore guard Mason Gorham (24 points) and senior big man Jimmy McGoey (21) and held off a late charge from host East Hampton to defeat the Bellringers 65-62 Wednesday night.
The Cougars (2-3) also overcame an excellent shooting night by East Hampton senior Grant Arcidiacono, who had five 3-pointers and finished with a game-high 27 points.
“I thought it was a really good high school basketball game,” H-K coach Jim Abbott said afterward. “The kids on both sides were making big shots. It was a back-and-forth game the whole time and a lot of fun.”
The Cougars took a 48-46 lead into the fourth quarter. The Bellringers tied it at 53 when Nathan Ireland hit two free throws with 3:07 remaining. Gorham hit his third 3-pointer of the night on H-K’s next possession, and after the teams traded turnovers, McGoey scored underneath for a 58-53 advantage with 2:12 on the clock.
“Mason has been struggling with his shot so far this season and he’s been working really hard on it,” said Abbott. “He mentioned in practice the other day that it was starting to come. He knocked some big ones down today.”
The closest East Hampton got in the final two minutes was 62-59 on Arcidiacono’s final field goal, a 3-pointer with 52.9 seconds left.
The Bellringers (2-3) struggled to protect the ball in seeing their two-game winning streak end.
“We were too sloppy with the ball,” coach Parker Strong said. “Some of the turnovers were hard to understand. H-K did a better job of finishing that we did. In a three-point game, it’s one or two plays that made a difference. Grant played well, but you play five at a time. Right now too many guys are underperforming and that’s an issue.”
Abbott was happy to see the Cougars bounce back and close out the win after letting two games get away from them earlier this month.
“I thought we did a nice job bouncing back,” he said. “I was very pleased that we didn’t fall apart.”
Both teams are back at it Thursday. H-K hosts Old Lyme, while East Hampton visits Hale-Ray.
HADDAM-KILLINGWORTH (2-3)
Alex Erskine 0 1 1, Jimmy McGoey 10 0 21, Tony Giambanis 3 0 7, Chase O’Linn 1 3 6, Ronnie Scarpa 0 0 0, Cam Powers 2 0 6, Mason Gorham 9 3 24. Totals: 25 7 65.
EAST HAMPTON (2-3)
Dan Cascio 2 0 5, Grant Arcidiacono 9 4 27, Jye Lynch 0 0 0, Jack Blakely 1 0 2, Nate Ireland 2 3 7, Drew DiStefano 2 0 5, Max Karrenberg 1 0 3, Chris Progano 2 4 10, Ethan Palma 1 1 3, Darren Way 0 0 0. Totals: 20 12 62.
Score By Quarters
HK 13 15 20 17–65
EH 19 7 20 16–62
3-Pointers: HK–Gorham 3, Powers 2, McGoey 1, Giambanis 1, O’Linn 1; EH–Arcidiacono 5, Progano 2, Cascio 1, Ireland 1, DiStefano 1, Karrenberg 1.
In other boys basketball games Wednesday:
Portland 67, Westbrook 42
WESTBROOK – Portland held Westbrook to 13 first-half points and Cam Latronica was one of four Highlanders to score in double figures in their Shoreline Conference road victory over the Knights.
The Highlanders won their third straight game under first-year coach David Bradbury.
“We went in tonight and really excelled on both ends of the floor,” Bradbury said. “On the offensive end we played tough and finished strong. I would still like us to finish stronger and limit our turnovers. On the defensive end we did a really good job executing the game plan with our matchups and really getting aggressive and playing clean. We’re doing a good job with the press I’m putting in.”
Mason Piersall scored 13 points and TJ Reddington and Eli Evison contributed 11 each for Portland. Jack Naccarato was the lone Knights player in double figures with 18 points.
Portland visits North Branford on Thursday night with the chance to extend its winning streak.
“I would love for us to continue this hot streak,” Bradbury said. “I think we have a lot of winnable games ahead of us. I want to keep seeing us execute on both ends of the floor and play Portland basketball.”
PORTLAND (3-1)
Cody Daggett 3 2-2 8, TJ Reddington 4 0-0 11, Mason Piersall 6 0-2 13, Cam Latronica 7 1-2 15, Luke Francesco 0 0-0 0, Eli Evison 5 1-2 11, Chris Vargas 4 0-0 9, Harrison Collins 0 0-0 0, Evan Johnson 0 0-0 0 Austin Vess 0 0-0 0. Totals: 29 4-8 67.
WESTBROOK (1-4)
Joey Caslin 3 0-0 6, Jack Naccarato 7 2-5 18, Brandan Naccarato 1 2-6 4, Sammy Freeman 4 0-0 9, Nick Palumbo 1 1-2 3, Evan McIntyre 1 0-0 2. Totals: 17 5-13 42.
Score By Quarters
P 19 17 18 13–67
W 8 5 16 13–42
3-Pointers: P–Reddington 3, Piersall 1, Vargas 1; W–J. Naccarato 2, Freeman 1.
Hale-Ray 57, Old Lyme 42
HALE-RAY (3-1)
Matt Conroy 3 6 13, Loudon Chupas 8 4 23, Mamush Ciccarello 3 0 7, Miles Gagne 2 0 5, Nate Matetich 4 0 9. Totals: 20 10 57.
OLD LYME (2-2)
Nick Cox 5 3 15, Frank Sablone 1 1 4, Colbe Andrews 4 0 8, Caden 1 0 2, Maverick Swaney 4 5 13. Totals: 15 9 42.
Score By Quarters
HR 11 18 14 14—57
OL 13 8 12 9—42
3-Pointers: HR—Chupas 3, Conroy 1, Ciccarello 1, Gagne 1, Matetich 1; OL—Cox 2, Sablone 1.
GIRLS BASKETBALL
Portland 45, Westbrook 32
WESTBROOK (0-4)
Jami Sacco 4 1-2 10, Alexandria Zanzalari 3 0-0 6, Ganni Salisbury 2 0-2 4, Adriana Strangri 4 1-3 10, Kayla Prisley 1 0-0 2. Totals: 14 2-/7 32.
PORTLAND (1-3)
Allison Scott 0 1-2 1, Ava Hurley 3 2-4 10, Hannah Brunk 5 3-5 13, Carly Graves 1 3-5 6, Hailey Carlson 1 0-0 3, Sam Lasky 6 0-0 12. Totals: 16 9-16 45.
Score By Quarters
W 12 5 6 9–32
P 14 5 14 12–45
3-Pointers: W—Sacco 1, Strangri; P—Hurley 2, Graves 1, Carlson 1.
Hand 35, Mercy 23
HAND (5-0)
Natalie Lucas 0 0-0 0, Brooke Salutari 3 3-5 10, Sophia Coppola 3 0-1 6, Hadley Houghton 1 2-2 4, Maddie Thomas 5 3-4 13, Coco Rourke 1 0-0 2. Totals: 13 8-12 35.
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MERCY (5-1)
Sophie Hedge 4 1-2 12, Ava Giansiracusa 1 0-0 3, Lauren Kohs 0 1-2 1, Lily Schoonmaker 2 1-2 5, Sam Strell 0 0-2 0, Melina Ford 1 0-0 2. Totals: 8 3-8 23.
Score By Quarters
H 2 7 13 13—35
M 6 4 6 7—23
3-Pointers: H—Salutari 1; M—S. Hedge 3, Giansiracusa 1.