Fonda-Fultonville boys hand Northville its first loss

PHOTOGRAPHER: Paul Wager

Fonda-Fultonville's Nate Mycek (2) shoots over Northville's Evan Tamulaitis (23) during Wednesday's Western Athletic Conference game at Fonda-Fultonville High School.

FONDA — In its first three games this season, the Fonda-Fultonville boys’ basketball team has struggled to find consistency on offense.

The Braves scored just 46 points on Wednesday, but their defense held Northville in check in a 46-20 Western Athletic Conference victory at Fonda-Fultonville High School on Wednesday.

“We did a good job defensively tonight,” Fonda-Fultonville coach Eric Wilson said. “We’re starting to turn that corner.”

Jackson Cusack scored 13 points to lead FFCS, while Aidan Frederick had 10 points. Riley Wilson scored eight points for the Braves, Brady Whipple finished with seven and Logan Miller added four points.

Jacob Frank scored 10 points to lead Northville, while J.T. Artikuski and Chase Mitchell each had four points.

Wednesday’s contest marked the third time in four games that the Braves have scored less than 50 points.

“Offensively, we’re a work in progress. At times, we’ve been inconsistent. It’s been tough to get in any kind of groove because we’ve had kids sick and in and out of the lineup,” coach Wilson said.
“Everybody is going through that right now.”

Like Fonda-Fultonville, Northville also has had its struggles on the offensive end, also scoring 50 or less in three of its four outings.

“We struggled to get into our offense and we struggled to make shots tonight,” Northville coach John Karbowski said.

The teams combined for just 35 first-half points Wednesday, with the Braves taking a 24-11 lead into the break.

In the opening quarter, Cusack scored seven of Fonda-Fultonville’s points as the Braves took an early 12-7 lead. There were eight lead changes or ties in the opening eight minutes.

“I thought we did a good job defensively tonight,” Karbowski said. “We wanted to compete and I thought we did that early on. There were definitely a lot of positives on the defensive end.”

Fonda-Fultonville limited the Falcons to just four points in the second quarter.

Cusack scored six of the Braves’ 12 points to finish the first half with 13.

Things continued to be a struggle for the Falcons in the second half as they scored just one point in the third quarter.

Fonda-Fultonville broke the game open by scoring 18 points in the quarter as Riley Wilson and Whipple each had five points in the quarter. The Braves had six players score in the quarter as they took a 42-12 lead.

In the final quarter, Frank scored six points for the Falcons, who outscored the Braves 8-4 to make the final score 46-20.

It was the first loss of the season for Northville.

“To play teams like Fonda-Fultonville is a win for us,” Karbowski said. “It’s not the outcome we wanted, but these are the types of games that will make us better over the long haul.”

Both teams are scheduled to compete in the Coaches vs. Cancer Bracket Buster at Hudson Valley Community College.

Northville (3-1 overall, 1-1 WAC) is slated to face Heatly on Friday at 5 p.m., while Fonda-Fultonville (3-1 overall, 1-1 WAC) is scheduled to face Greenville on Saturday at 11 a.m.

Fonda-Fultonville 46, Northville 20
Northville 7 4 1 8 – 20
Fonda-Fultonville 12 12 18 4 – 46
Northville
Artikuski 2-0-4, Frank 4-2-10, Mitchell 2-0-4, Cordone 0-2-2. Totals 8-4-20.
Fonda-Fultonville
Mycek 1-0-2, Cusack 3-6-13, Wilson 3-0-8, Whipple 3-1-7, Miller 2-0-4, Frederick 4-2-10, Melious 1-0-2. Totals 17-9-46.