Eagles will face a familiar foe in Class C finals

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The road to a Class C boys’ basketball championship will run through a familiar foe for Duanesburg.

The Eagles and Western Athletic Conference South Division rival Canajoharie both advanced to Saturday’s final after posting wins Tuesday night at the Glens Falls Civic Center.

Duanesburg, the seventh seed, used a strong inside game from Matt St. John to oust sixth-seeded Warrensburg, 54-41, in the first half of the semifinal double-header. The top-seeded Cougars were in control from the start in beating fourth-seeded Waterford-Halfmoon, 54-25, in the second game.

Canajoharie won both WAC meetings with Duanesburg this season.

“We’ve got a bunch of guys who keep plugging,” said Duanesburg coach John Johnson, who saw Zach Edwards score 12 points in the first half and St. John get nine of his team-high 14 after the break. “At the end of the year, our interior people have stepped up.

“It’s a combination of factors, with the guys coming together with the right attitude, the right approach, and thankfully, getting good results.”

Edwards helped the Eagles stay with the Burgers in the first half, hitting a pair of threes in scoring eight of his team’s 15 first-quarter points. But when Warrensburg changed defenses, the Adirondack League team essentially changed the outcome of the game.

St. John answered the challenge by scorning nine points in the fourth quarter.

“They tried to shut off Zach,” said Eagles point guard Kyle Boyd. “We knew we’d be able to find Matt inside. Coach said to get it down low.”

“They started to box-and-one our leading scorer [Edwards], once they knew who he was,” said St. John. “I knew the ball would be coming inside.”

Down by two at the end of the third, Duanesburg went on a 12-4 run to open the fourth quarter.

St. John stepped out and hit a three-pointer, and John Hurlburt added another trey. R.J. Barry added a basket from the wing, and St. John made half of his attempts on consecutive trips to the foul line. When he then muscled home a shot in the lane, the Eagles were up, 45-39.

Another St. John basket pushed the lead to eight with less than two minutes to play. From that point, Boyd made continuous trips to the line, as his teammates put the ball in his hands after each Warrensburg miss.

“That’s my job, to run the offense,” said Boyd. “I knew toward the end they’d be fouling. I just had to make sure I hit them.”

After missing his first attempt, Boyd hit the first shot on the next three one-and-one situations, finishing off the Burgers.

“I’m happy for the seniors,” said Johnson. “They’ve been able to persevere, especially the last few weeks.”

Once Canajoharie got its legs, there was no stopping the top-seeded Cougars.

“The court is different than the last game we played at Saint Rose,” said Peyton Stahler, who again led the 18-4 Cougars, pouring in 18 points, including 10 in a second quarter that saw Canajoharie own a 35-12 lead when it was over. “This floor felt different, and my legs were feeling kind of weird and I was shooting off-balance shots.”

His equilibrium established, Stahler hit five baskets in the second quarter, most coming off drives.

Anthony Taylor was a perfect complement, canning three first-half three-pointers, forcing the Fordians to honor both defensively.

“After the first one, I started feeling it. I felt good,” said Taylor, whose final three just beat the horn at the end of the half. “That one really felt good.”

While pleased with the semifinal effort, Canajoharie coach Rick Pal­umbo knows what is ahead.

“Tonight, we came out and played hard,” said Palumbo. “We controlled the defensive boards, and ‘AT’ hit some threes to open it up early, and Peyton is a hard guy to stop.

“Duanesburg is not a bad team. The third time, hopefully, we don’t let them sneak up on us.”

DUANESBURG 54, WARRENSBURG 41

DUANESBURG

Boyd 1-5-7. Fiacco 3-0-6, Barry 2-2-6, Edwards 4-2-12, St. John 4-4-14, Minnerly 1-0-2, Ferri 2-0-4, Hurlburt 1-0-3. Totals: 18-13-54.

WARRENSBURG

Frye 0-3-3, Belden 2-0-4, Holmgren 3-1-8, Webster 7-2-17, Perrone 3-0-7, Curtis 1-0-2. Totals: 16-6-41

Duanesburg 15 10  8 21 — 54

Warrrensburg  8 10 17  6 — 41

Three-point goals: Edwards 2, St. John 2, Hulburt, Holmgren, Webster, Perrone.

CANAJOHARIE 54, WATERFORD-HALFMOON 25

WATERFORD-HALFMOON

Berthiaume 1-0-2, Carmel 2-1-6, Yattaw 2-2-6, Hilton 2-0-4, Marchione 0-1-1, Carr 0-2-2, Brazil 0-2-2, Hancox 0-1-1. Totals: 8-9-25.

CANAJOHARIE

Stahler 6-618, Mosher 3-0-6, O’Neil 4-0-9, Taylor 4-1-12, Weaver 2-0-4, Klock 1-0-3, Fleisher 1-0-2. Totals: 21-7-54.

Waterford  7  5  4 9 — 25

Canajoharie 18 17 10 9 — 54

Three-point goals: Carmel, O’Neil, Taylor 3.

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Categories: High School Sports