Millionaires rebound from Hoophall with win over St. Joe’s

LENOX – Scott Sibley has been talking all season long about his team putting together a full 32-minute performance.

Monday night they got exactly that.

After a tough 68-50 defeat at the hands of Smith Academy last Thursday at the Hoophall Classic, Sibley’s team took advantage of a downtrodden St. Joe’s team, defeating the Crusaders 57-43.

“Against these good teams you have to play 32 minutes; in years past, we were good enough to get by playing 24 minutes,” Sibley said.

Against Smith Academy, the Millionaires were invited to play in one of the most prestigious basketball showcases in the country at Springfield College.

The invitation was not taken lightly, as the coach recounted after the game.

“Great experience – so happy we got invited down here – I think it’s an experience the kids will remember forever,” Sibley said.

What Lenox will not remember is the fact the team opened the game missing six layups in the first quarter and the 10 turnovers in the first half, leading Smith Academy to jump out to a 25-19 lead at halftime.

“Take away those six minutes of missed layups, and it’s a whole new ballgame,” Sibley said. “One quarter every game we seem to come out a little bit flat.”

The third quarter wasn’t much better, as Smith Academy knocked down a couple of three-pointers and went on a 25-13 run to take a commanding lead heading into the final frame.

“We wanted to switch out of the 2-3 zone because they liked to run and swing the ball – so we went to a 1-3-1 trap, and they got some easy baskets,” Sibley said.

One bright spot for Lenox: the team’s game MVP was Robert Tharion, who had 11 points and five rebounds for the Millionaires, while Andrew Vickery chipped in eight points and six rebounds.

“That’s the Robert Tharion I have been expecting,” Sibley said. “I was happy with how he played and how some of the kids shot the three-ball.”

Lenox was 6-14 behind the arc for 43 percent, with Bailey Patella (2-4) from behind the arc for eight points and Ben Herrick (2-5) for eight points also.

Keith Natale lead Smith Academy with 26 points and 11 rebounds, and guard Derek McMahon chipped in 18 points to lead the Hatfield team.

“Taking the loss away, the tournament was run beautifully, and I am glad we came down,” Sibley said.

Sibley was even more happy when his team’s game with Berkshire County’s best, St. Joseph’s, which was moved from Friday night to Monday night due to a team illness that caused the Crusaders to bow out from their Saturday contest at the Hoophall Classic.

The Crusaders weren’t themselves, as Lenox ran them ragged in the 14-point win, moving the Millionaires into county league  respectability at 4-6 overall.

Lenox jumped out to an early 19-6 lead after the first quarter and built a 31-13 lead at halftime over the struggling Crusaders. Herrick was on fire as he finished with 25 points, and fellow guard Patella added nine points while Lenox was lead underneath by Vickery with 11 points.

Leading Crusader scorers Michael Carpenter (three points) and Tank Roberson (18 points) weren’t themselves; neither was Lavante Wiggins, who had only seven points.

Posted by Tim Davis on January 24, 2013. Filed under High School Sports,Sports. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry