Saratoga Springs senior Jordan Stevens took over in the fourth quarter of Sunday night’s championship game at the Arthur Hilliard Memorial Basketball Tournament.
With his 16-point effort over the final eight minutes, capped by two free throws with 23 seconds left, the Holy Cross-bound swingman also took the most valuable player award away from emerging Schenectady star Reece Jackson.
“Jordan Stevens made big shots. Great players make big shots in big games,” Schenectady coach Mark Sauville said after the Blue Streaks’ 57-56 triumph at the Pat Riley Sports Center. “Mark [Blair] was on him on both of those deep threes. The defense was there.”
The smooth, 6-foot-5 left-hander continually elevated over it, though, and scored 21 of his 27 points in the second half as Saratoga Springs (6-1) wrested the championship away from Schenectady (5-3), which had won 11 of the previous 12 crowns.
“That shows you the consistency they’ve had here,” Blue Streaks coach Mitch Snyder said after his team avenged last year’s title-game loss to the Patriots. “Getting a win here is a difficult thing to do. We had a lot of kids step up and make hustle plays, and that’s something you have to do to beat Schenectady. Winning here, it’s a good feeling.”
Stevens wasn’t feeling so good Sunday morning.
“He called me at 4 p.m., and said he could play,” Snyder said of the Daily Gazette All-Area first-teamer. “He was in bed all day, sick with the flu. I didn’t know if he would be available. I was glad to have him.”
“Earlier today, I wasn’t sure,” said Stevens. “I decided to give it a shot a couple of hours before.”
Stevens generated all but three of Saratoga’s fourth-quarter points on a pair of three-point baskets, a layup, two mid-range jumpers and four free throws. His three-pointer with 1:51 left gave the Blue Streaks their first lead of the contest at 54-52,
and his foul shots with 23 seconds left created the final margin.
“I was feeling my shot in the fourth quarter,” said Stevens, who netted 26 points in Saturday’s 63-58 win over Guilderland. “That made the free throws a lot easier.”
Senior guard Alex King added 12 points for Saratoga, while Jackson, a junior swingman, totaled 16 points and 17 rebounds to lead the Patriots. Jackson also excelled in Saturday’s 52-36 win over Niskayuna with a career-high 24 points and five blocked shots.
“I was feeling the adrenaline,” said Jackson. “I came out ready to play.”
“He’s taken the challenge I’ve given him. He’s been playing really hard,” Sausville said of the 6-6 Jackson, who, along with teammate Derrick Millinghaus and King, made the all-tournament team. “He’s starting to understand that he can play with the best guys around.”
Josh Williams had his finest game as a Patriot with 15 points, 13 of them coming in the second half. The junior guard’s short jumper tied the game at 54-54, and his two free throws with 46 seconds to go nudged Schenectady ahead, 56-55, before Stevens was fouled on a drive and connected from the line.
“A lot of guys were stepping up,” Stevens said. “I felt I needed to step up, too. I had to be a leader.”
“He [Stevens] played sick. He also has a deep thigh bruise,” Snyder said of Saratoga’s second all-time leading point producer. “He stuck it out. They whole team did.”
Millinghaus missed a three-point shot from the left wing with three seconds left, and King grabbed a rebound and dribbled the clock out as Saratoga Springs ended Schenectady’s four-game winning streak.
“I’m not thrilled with the loss, but I am thrilled with the effort,” Sausville said. “Everyone was ready to go. They brought much more energy tonight than we had last night.”
Millinghaus finished with 11 points, and, like Jackson, has scored in double digits in all eight of the Patriots’ games.
Niagara Falls defeated Bishop Maginn in a non-league game, 78-58.
Bunduka Kargbo led Maginn (5-1) with 20 points.
GIRLS
All-tournament pick Lindsay Mayo put up 12 points, and all nine Niskayuna players scored for the second straight day as the Silver Warriors beat Columbia, 46-38, in the Arthur Hilliard championship game.
Lisa Rufer was selected the MVP after guiding Niskayuna (6-1) to its third Hilliard championship in four years. Gabrielle Regan scored 12 points for Columbia (3-5), and Amanda Batzold added 10.
Antonia Williams and Samara Butler scored 10 points apiece, and Schenectady (9-1) posted a 43-34 consolation-game win over Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake (1-6). Georgina Farrow and Jenna Juron scored 16 and 15 points, respectively, for the Spartans.
Christ the King went on a 24-0 scoring spree spanning the second and third quarters to erase a 23-22 deficit, and the Royals (7-3) beat the host Lady Plainsmen, 60-42, in the Shenendehowa Holiday Classic.
Emily Weber scored 14 points for Shenendehowa (5-2).
Staci McElroy scored 12 of her 27 points in a 20-4 fourth-quarter run as Saratoga Springs (2-5) rallied past Massapequa, 53-46, to gain a two-game split at the Lake Placid Tournament.
Hannah Wilson scored 12 points as unbeaten Holy Names won its own tournament with a 48-31 win over Hudson.
Hudson beat Gloversville, 55-31, in the consolation game, as Meghan Keeler and Shavonda Cousin combined for 27 points.
BOYS
HILLIARD TOURNAMENT
Championship
SARATOGA SPRINGS 57, SCHENECTADY 56
SARATOGA SPRINGS
Doherty 3-2-8, Stegman 1-0-2, Luciano 2-0-6, Stevens 9-5-27, Tucker 1-0-2, King 5-1-12. Totals: 21-8-57.
SCHENECTADY
Blair 2-1-5, Jackson 6-1-16, Long 2-0-4, Der. Millinghaus 5-0-11, S. Millinghaus 2-0-5, Williams 6-2-15. Totals: 23-4-56.
Saratoga Springs 14 7 17 19 — 57
Schenectady 18 10 12 16 — 56
Three-point goals: Luciano 2, Stevens 4, King, Jackson 3, Der. Millinghaus, S. Millinghaus, Williams.
NON-LEAGUE
NIAGARA FALLS 78, BISHOP MAGINN 58
NIAGARA FALLS
Agee 11-3-28, Brown 1-0-2, Cox 1-2-4, Crumpton 5-0-10, Marshall 5-1-14, Stokes 10-0-20. Totals: 33-6-78.
BISHOP MAGINN
Buie 5-1-12, Burrell 2-0-4, Jeffers 2-1-5, Kargbo 6-8-20, Rios 1-1-3, Scott 2-1-5, Scurry 3-0-6, Torres 1-1-3. Totals: 22-13-58.
Niagara Falls 22 14 26 16 — 78
Bishop Maginn 16 11 14 17 — 58
Three-point goals: Agee 3, Marshall 3, Buie.
GIRLS
HILLIARD TOURNAMENT
Championship
NISKAYUNA 46, COLUMBIA 38
COLUMBIA
Batzold 3-1-10, Burek 1-0-2, Hallenback 1-1-3, Osterdahl 0-2-2, Regan 3-6-12, Trembley 1-1-4, Vazzana 0-1-1, Young 2-0-4.
Totals: 11-12-38.
NISKAYUNA
Cocca 1-5-7, Fagan 2-1-5, Gray 2-0-6, Mayo 6-0-12, McCaughan 1-0-2, O’Donnell 0-1-1, Rufer 2-2-6, Seymour 0-3-3, Treanor 2-0-4. Totals: 16-12-46.
Columbia 4 4 11 19 — 38
Niskayuna 10 5 12 19 — 46
Three-point goals: Batzold 3, Trembley, Gray 2.
Consolation
SCHENECTADY 43, BURNT HILLS-BALLSTON LAKE 34
BURNT HILLS-BALLSTON LAKE
Shively 1-0-2, Brown 0-1-1, Juron 4-5-15, Farrow 5-4-16, Allocco 0-0-0. Totals: 10-10-34.
SCHENECTADY
Butler 4-1-10, Colafemina 1-0-2, Cromwell 3-1-7, Dixon 2-0-5, LaFons 1-2-4, McLean 1-2-4, Tanner 0-1-1, Williams 3-4-10. Totals: 15-11-43.
BH-BL 4 7 10 13 — 34
Schenectady 7 6 16 14 — 43
Three-point goals: Juron 2, Farrow 2, Butler, Dixon.
SHENENDEHOWA TOURNAMENT
Championship
CHRIST THE KING 60, SHENENDEHOWA 42
CHRIST THE KING
Michel 0-1-1, Oden 3-0-6, George 3-1-7, Johnson 5-1-11, Edwards 3-2-8, Maiforth 1-0-2, Smith 6-3-15, Burner 4-0-8, Wasserfall 1-0-2. Totals: 26-8-60.
SHENENDEHOWA
Guy 2-0-4, Alexander 1-2-5, Wheeler 2-1-5, Rhoades 3-0-6, Mangione 2-1-5, Weber 4-5-14, Smith 1-0-2, Rogers 0-1-1.
Totals: 15-10-42.
Christ the King 14 16 23 7 — 60
Shenendehowa 14 9 7 12 — 42
Three-point goals: Alexander, Weber.
LAKE PLACID TOURNAMENT
Second round
SARATOGA SPRINGS 53, MASSAPEQUA 46
SARATOGA SPRINGS
Hannon 2-1-5, Harkins 1-2-4, Crawford 1-2-4, Davison 4-1-9, McElroy 9-9-27, Clare 0-4-4. Totals: 17-19-53.
MASSAPEQUA
Daly 4-0-11, Tierney 1-0-2, Romano 4-1-9, Bartels 3-0-8, Benk 3-0-7, DeNicola 2-5-9. Totals: 17-6-46.
Saratoga Springs 13 9 11 20 — 53
Massapequa 13 17 12 4 — 46
Three-point goals: Daly 3, Bartels 2, Benk.
HOLY NAMES TOURNAMENT
Championship
HOLY NAMES 48, MAPLE HILL 31
MAPLE HILL
Arno 1-0-2, Dailey 3-2-10, DerGurahian 1-0-3, Hendrick 2-0-4, Racz 1-0-2, Roth 4-2-10. Totals: 12-4-31.
HOLY NAMES
Agan 2-0-5, Arduini 2-3-8, McCoy 2-0-6, Moore 1-0-2, Murphy 4-0-8, Wilson 5-0-12, Witte 3-0-7. Totals: 19-3-48.
Maple Hill 7 5 14 5 — 31
Holy Names 11 20 10 7 — 48
Three-point goals: Dailey 2, DerGurahian, Agan, Arduini, McCoy 2, Wilson 2, Witte.
Consolation
HUDSON 55, GLOVERSVILLE 31
GLOVERSVILLE
Carey 2-1-5, Clemente 3-5-11, Nethaway 0-2-2, Schubert 3-0-9, Tisinger 0-1-1, Webber 1-0-3. Totals: 9-9-31.
HUDSON
Alessi 1-2-4, Bednar 1-0-2, Cousin 6-1-13, Davis 2-3-7, Garafalo 2-0-4, Gazzara 1-0-2,
Keeler 5-0-14, Kitsock 2-0-5, Zapp 2-0-4.
Totals: 22-6-55.
Gloversville 2 6 10 13 — 31
Hudson 20 12 10 13 — 55
Three-point goals: Schubert 3, Webber, Keeler 4, Kitsock.
Categories: High School Sports
