Boys Warriors get regional title over Green Tech

By PHil BlACKWEll

Five years after it ascended to the peak of New York State Public High School Athletic Association Class AA boys basketball, Liverpool is two victories from getting there again.

By defeating Albany’s Green Tech 65-49 in last Saturday’s AA regional final at SRC Arena, the Warriors have returned to the state final four, armed with a lineup that can both produce plenty of baskets and shut down the opposition from doing the same.

It was the defensive part that mattered most against a Green Tech side that beat the Warriors both in last year’s regional final and again in late January, the latter of them when star forward Andreo Ash was out with an injury.

“Our guys came out motivated and our defense was stifling,” said head coach Ryan Blackwell.

All that the Eagles could manage in the first quarter was four points, and it didn’t get into double figures until deep into the second period.

Blackwell said the key to this defensive effort was taking what it learned from those previous match-ups with Green Tech and mostly keeping the Eagles’ forwards from establishing themselves in the paint.

Ash, for his part, said it was vital to “crash the glass and keep (Green Tech’s) guards in check”, and that’s exactly what happened.

All of the missed shot and forced turnovers caused plenty of frustration for the Eagles, and it boiled over early in the second quarter when, after a rare Green Tech basket, guard Haisi Mayben got into an encounter with Jah’Deuir Reese, and both were issued technical fouls.

The game settled down from there, with the Eagles finally able to produce baskets on a consistent basis, only to see Liverpool answer every single time things threatened to get tight.

Late in the third quarter, Green Tech had closed the gap to 34-27 when Jason Lawler hit on a big 3-pointer. Then Ash

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THURSDAY, MARCH 16

On the Same Page 6 p.m. Salina Library. Discuss books and TV shows and movies based on books. Tell us what you’ve loved or didn’t like! Register or email adults@salinalibrary. org for a Zoom link.

FRIDAY, MARCH 17

Reuben Sandwiches

12 p.m. Baldwinsville American Legion Post 113, 8529 Smokey Hollow Rd. Take out available. $11 includes sandwich, chips, and pickles.

In Search of Owls

1 p.m. Sterling Nature Center. Take a long hike in search of owls and roosting at the center. Pre-registration required.

Merlyn of Merry Mischief Musical Entertainment

11 a.m. Canton Woods. Enjoy Irish music and mer- hal henty liverpool guard Freddy Fowler whips a pass to the corner in last Saturday’s Class AA regional final against Green Tech, where the Warriors prevailed 65-49. and Bruce Wingate hit on back-to-back baskets that extended the Warriors’ margin to 41-29 going to the final period.

Boston is the overwhelming favorite with its record points place. Yet Carolina, New Jersey, Toronto, Tampa Bay and the New York Rangers all are powerhouses, too, only reinforced in the recent trade deadline.

All of them play in the Eastern Conference –which, given the current structure, means some monster first-round series where the Lightning and Leafs go at it, as do the Devils and Rangers.

Go to the Western Conference, and it’s nowhere near as daunting. Dallas is pretty good. Colorado, at full strength, resembles the champs of a year ago. Then…...Vegas? Edmonton? Winnipeg? L.A.? Doesn’t seem that imposing.

Here is where rigid conference structures hinder the league’s product. Ideally, a team finishing in the league’s top eight (out of 32 teams, remember) should have a home-ice advantage in the opening round, but at least two, maybe more, will not this time around.

About the only way this can be addressed is by doing something the NHL, along with the NBA, has refused to consider – namely, reseeding the playoff teams once the field is established.

The arguments against this idea are obvious. You might have far more travel during a sevengame series, especially if you hold on to the 2-2-1-1-1 format of who hosts games.

Never mind that it breaks up potential rivalries. The NHL loved those feuds in the Adams, Patrick, Norris and Smythe days when Montreal-Quebec, Islanders-Rangers and EdmontonCalgary frequently ran into each other.

Overriding all these concerns, though, is the simple idea of fairness.

In any given season, there can simply be more good teams in one conference over the other. So why should some teams in the strong conference be punished, at least at the outset?

It never got within single digits again as Ash led all scorers with 20 points. Wingate, after a slow start, worked his way to 17 points, while Reese had 11 points and Lawler gained 10 points.

On Friday at 1 p.m. at Glens Falls’ Cool Inusring Arena, Liverpool will face Section I’s North Rockland in the state semifinals. The winner of that game goes to Saturday night’s title game at 7 p.m.

Blackwell said that, no matter who Liverpool faces in Glens Falls, the key was to still practice hard, then “play the way we play”, focusing on defense first, just like it did to get this far.

Community Calendar

riment. Make a reservation for lunch and enjoy traditional Irish corned beef, cabbage, and carrot dinner. Call 315-638-4536.

SATURDAY, MARCH 18

TACNY Junior Café Scientifique

9:30-11 a.m. The MOST, Syracuse. “Blood Clots and the Circulatory System” Program is primarily for middle school students. Come early for a continental breakfast and then visit the MOST as our guest when the program is over. Free. Must RSVP at jrcafe@tacny.org. Hot Sauce Fundraiser 11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Cicero Library. Place a purchase request by registering at nopl.org/events or call 315-699-2301. Precedes fund the Library Farm’s projects and maintenance.

National Quilting Day 12 p.m.-3 p.m. Liverpool Public Library. Join the Plank Road Quilt Guild for National Quilting Day! Enjoy a mini quilt show, Q&A with guild members, and a learn to sew event for children ages 8 years and older.

Lego Contest Open House 1 p.m.-3 p.m. Skaneateles Library. Drop in the library to view all the Lego builds and celebrate all things Lego.

MONDAY, MARCH 20

Crochet Help 4 p.m. Salina Library. Get individual help with your crochet project, learn to crochet, or catch up on the 2023 afghan. Registration required.

Mexican Train Dominoes 6 p.m. Salina Library. Meet up for an evening of playing Mexican Train.

TUESDAY, MARCH 21

Virtual Voyage Open Forum 12-12:45 p.m. Virtual. CNY ATD traverses the virtual world with informal conversations. Topic will be ChatGPT. Register at cnyatd.org/virtual_forum.

Create! 6 p.m. Salina Library. Create an embossed bookmark. For adults 18 and older. Registration required.

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 22

Plank Road Quilt Guild Friendship Meeting

9:30 a.m. Cicero United Methodist Church. The guild will sew the tops for charity quilts using quilt blocks made by members. Event canceled if North Syracuse Schools closed.

Craft Kit: Embossed Bookmark Pick up a kit anytime while supplies last. One kit per person.

I’m not advocating just taking the 16 best teams regardless of conference. It’s fair to maintain a top-eight system, especially if the early rounds are not tied up in divisions, as they are now when we’re almost certain to get another Lighting-Leafs series.

What it could do is also give more weight to winning the regular-season points race. Sure, a 16 could beat a 1 (UMBC beat Virginia, after all), but in a best-of-seven it’s far less likely, especially if they are from different conferences and not as familiar with one another.

In other words, having lapped the field for six months, Boston’s “reward” is a tricky series against someone who had to play pressure hockey for weeks (if not months) just to reach the playoffs and, having come out of the tougher East, might be well-equipped to give the mighty Bruins a scare, even if it doesn’t end up resembling the shocking Columbus sweep of Tampa Bay in 2019.

Once, the NBA could have chosen this path, but when it instituted “play-in” tournaments for the seventh through 10th finishers in each conference, it only reinforced the long-established format, and the NHL has shown zero interest in a similar course – sorry, Sabres fans.

All of this is about having a playoff format which more accurately reflects where teams stand. Of course surprises can still happen –they always have and always will. All it takes is a hot goaltender or a sudden slump and regularseason mastery can lead to post-season misery.

But if, say, Boston and Carolina are the league’s top teams, they need not meet until the final, if they get that far. Then it would feel like a long build-up to a crashing championship climax, rather than a potential letdown if the Bruins or someone else end up with an overmatched Western Conference foe.

Maybe all these concerns are exaggerated and we get a memorable post-season just as it’s currently structured. But if all the tension and drama ends up on one side early on, remember….it need not be this way.

Phil Blackwell is sports editor at Eagle News. He can be reached at pblackwell@ eaglenewsonline. com.