SALAMANCA- What can you do when you’re down 54-36 in the fourth quarter with your season on the line? Salamanca figured it out, winning 60-58 over Falconer Saturday to move on to the Section 6 semifinal.
“If that’s not the greatest comeback in the history of our program, I don’t know what is,” Bennett said. “With everything on the line, just incredible resilience from our guys.”
The comeback was great, and if you like fast paced high school basketball with defensive highlights being a big part of the action, then Saturday night was a dream at Salamanca. Each team knew how to take the ball away and score on the other end.
Roger Markham from Falconer was the primary player that led this type of play. It felt like each time Salamanca had the ball he could tip the ball away at the top of the key and score on the other end.
Luckily for Salamanca, they turned the game around in the fourth quarter, showing the exact same defensive prowess.
The game started off well for the Warriors, they were leading 9-3 a few minutes in after Avery Brown scored seven straight. Falconer came back and tied the game to end the quarter at 11-11. But Salamanca looked like they were in control when they scored 11 straight points to open the second.
“I liked where we were at midway through the second quarter,” Bennett said.
22 points was all the first half scoring that the Warriors could muster though, and it was time for the Golden Falcons to show what they were made of.
After his teammates scored six straight to make it 22-17, Markham took over the game in the last few minutes before halftime. He went on a 9-0 run all by himself.
It started with a layup, then he got two steals and scored on the other end to put Falconer ahead 23-22, and Markham capped off his spree with a three-point play.
“They started picking up their pressure,” Bennett said. “For the first time in a while, I think we panicked a little bit. Their length got to us.”
It only got worse when Nathan Bailey made a buzzer beating three for Falconer to end the first half, the Golden Falcons’ 18-0 run made their lead 29-22.
Still, Salamanca had plenty of time. After Markham made a layup to open the second half and make the Faloner run 20-0, Salamanca started to look a little more like themselves.
They scored five straight to get back within four points, but it was made seven again when Markham hit a three. Falconer made five threes in the third quarter, and it was hard for Salamanca to match that type of pace.
Channing Brainard made three of those three’s to lead the effort that put Falconer ahead 52-36 at the end of the third. Their largest lead was 54-36 with 7:16 left in the game.
Great teams aren’t always great, they are just great when they have to be. Salamanca lived that saying out in the fourth quarter. In the next three minutes of play after being down 18, they scored 11 in a row.
Maddox Isaac made three free throws, then Salamanca scored four points off steals. “If we were going to go down, we were going to do it with our identity,” Salamanca coach Adam Bennett said. “To press, and run and pressure.”
Brown made a three to cut the deficit to 56-50 with 2:38 left in the game. Markham scored, but Isaac answered with a three. Salamanca quickly got a steal and the crowd went wild after Jacob Herrick nailed a huge three-pointer to make it 58-56 with 1:32 remaining. Isaac then tied the game with a layup with 1:05 left.
“I have 1,000% trust in them,” Bennett said. “They are experienced and we leaned on our seniors. They are not going to fold, they are just going to keep playing”
Brown made a short mid range shot to put the Warriors ahead with 26 seconds left. The Golden Falcons gave the ball to Markham on their next possession, but Salamanca played tough defense and they tipped the ball loose, forcing a jump ball.
The possession arrow went to Falconer, but Salamanca’s quick hands tipped the inbounds pass again and forced another jump ball with Salamanca gaining possession with only three seconds left.
“That’s our identity,” Bennett said. “These guys care as much about getting stops as they do scoring the ball.”
Herrick missed both free throws after getting fouled. But a last second lob from the Golden Falcons was off the mark to give Salamanca an historic victory for their program.
“When the lights are the brightest, that’s when they play their best,” Bennett said. “That’s what I learned down the stretch.”
Brown led the game with 20 points, Herrick added 13 and Isaac had 10. Falconer’s effort was led by Markham, who scored 19 points. Bailey and Zach Markham each added 10.
No. 1 Salamanca will return to action at 5 p.m. Wednesday in Buffalo State for their semifinal matchup against No. 4 Wilson.
AT SALAMANCA
FALCONER (58)
Delaney 2 2-2 6, R. Markham 8 1-3 19, Parmentier 1 0-0 2, Brainard 3 0-0 9, Bailey 4 0-0 10, Wood 1 0-0 2, Z. Markham 3 2-2 10. Totals: 22 5-7 58.
SALAMANCA (60)
Herrick 5 1-4 13, Hill 1 0-0 3, Isaac 3 3-3 10, Crouse 3 0-0 7, Brown 8 3-6 20, Holleran 3 0-0 7. Totals: 23 7-13 60.
Three-point goals: Falc 9 (Brainard 3, R. Markham 2, Bailey 2, Z. Markham 2), Sala 7 (Herrick 2, Hill, Crouse, Brown, Holleran). Total fouls: Falc 19, Sala 14. Fouled out: Holleran (S), Parmentier (F).
