Thursday, March 19, 2009

Maple Hill vs Onondaga NYS Class C semifinal preview

New York State Public High School Athletic Association boys basketball Class C semifinal
Friday, Glens Falls Civic Center, 5 p.m.
Tickets - $10


Maple Hill Wildcats (25-1)
Probable starting lineup
No. Name Pos. Yr. Hgt. PPG
24 Jaime Schultz PG Sr. 5-11 8.8
21 Trent Tibbitts SG Sr. 6-0 15.9
10 Chris Despart G/F Jr. 6-0 8.5
44 David Briggs F Jr. 6-2 6.5
55 Sean Danaher C Jr. 6-5 11.0
Key reserves
32 Adrian Donnelly F Sr. 6-4 6.7
3 Dominic Prinzo G Jr. 5-9 3.0


Onondaga Tigers (17-9)
Probable starting lineup
No. Name Pos. Yr. Hgt. PPG
25 Ted Zabel F Sr. 6-4 13.0
45 Zach Holbrook F Sr. 6-3 9.8
34 Brad Emerson F Sr. 6-3 9.9
24 Chris Cota G Sr. 5-11 9.0
20 Taylor Bassett F So. 6-0 7.6


Civic Center Tickets: Session tickets cost $10 apiece at this weekend’s New York State Public High School Athletic Association boys basketball championships at the Glens Falls Civic Center. Tickets are available online at www.ticketmaster.com, in-person at the Civic Center Box Office, or by calling (800) 745-3000. Visit www.nysbasketball.net for a full schedule of events.

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Look for a couple of stories about the game in Friday's edition of The Record.
A prediction?
I think Onondaga's height will be a factor in this game. Maple Hill rarely uses Danaher and Donnelly on the court at the same time, but I see the both of them contributing in this game.
That said, Tibbitts and Schultz can pick the Tigers apart on the outside if they're left open or are just feeling it, as Tibbitts was in the second half of the Wildcats' regional championship victory over Norwood-Norfolk.

But Maple Hill has two big advantages over Onondaga. One, the Castleton Crazies and two, their familairty with the Civic Center.

"We’ve already played three games in Glens Falls so I think we might have a little bit of a feel for it already that some teams might not have," Danaher said. "It defintely feels good to be able to go back to Glens Falls."

"There was a good contingent of Maple Hill fans (at Hudson Valley Community College last) weekend and hopefully we can give them two games to cheer for instead of just one," said Maple Hill head coach Scott Hanrahan.

So to boil down the predicition, I think Onondaga's big men give the Wildcats a few fits early on in the game, but Maple Hill responds one of two ways. Tibbitts and Schultz bomb away from behind the three-point arc or Danaher and Donnelly find a way to stay out of foul trouble and work together in the paint as the Wildcats end Onondaga's Cinderella run.
Final score: Maple Hill 64, Onondaga 59

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