Boys’ Basketball

G-MU 40, Richfield Springs 38

COPES CORNERS – In a six-point hole to start the fourth quarter, G-MU rallied past Richfield Springs Tuesday night to advance in the Section IV Class D playoffs.

Richfield Springs’ Joeal Gardner canned a three with one minute and 45 seconds left in the fourth giving his club its last lead, 38-35.

G-MU closed the gap to one on Tim French’s mid-lane jumper, and a Greg Delaney steal on Richfield Springs’ next possession led to a one-and-one free throw opportunity for Delaney. Delaney made both tries giving his club the lead for good. Following a missed three ball by the Indians, Delaney again found himself at the line with 1.6 seconds left, and he made one free throw to wrap up the scoring.

Richfield Springs, winners by one over G-MU last month, missed a halfcourt shot at the buzzer. “It was the type of game you would expect from an 8-9 seed matchup,” said G-MU coach Bill Hartman. “Both teams were equally skilled, we just got the better of it.”

The Raiders played with just its starting rotation – DeMario Reed, Delaney, Eddie Ray Cotton, Tim French, and Dereck Musson – the entire game, an ironman effort for his players. “I’m just proud of how resilient the kids were. There wasn’t any negativity on the floor at all tonight,” Hartman said. “They just kept playing and didn’t panic. (Richfield Springs) didn’t shoot it that well in the fourth quarter, and we rebounded the ball much more aggressively. That defensive effort really gave us an opportunity to claw back.”

Delaney had 12 points, French 11, and DeMario Reed scored 10. Eddie Ray Cotton pulled down 12 rebounds, and he along with Reed limited Richfield Springs’ top scorers, Joe Kelly and Zach Boss, to eight total points. Entering the game, Kelly and Boss were averaging close to 30 combined points per game. “We just did a great job shutting down Kelly and Boss,” Hartman said, “and Cotton played a whale of a defensive game.”

G-MU (12-7) plays at top-seeded Hunter-Tannersville on Friday. “They’re in the top five in the state, and they have a nice program and a nice club over there,” Hartman said. “We’ll have to play close to a perfect game and get some help.”

RS: Keegan Wheelock-Tanner, 4 4-4-14, Lucas VanRiper, 3 0-0-6, Joe Kelly, 1 1-3-3, Kyle Richvalsky, 0, Zach Boss, 2 0-0-5; Joeal Gardner, 2 0-0-6; Ben Smith, 2 0-0-4. Totals: 14 5-7-38.

G-MU: DeMario Reed, 5 0-0-10; Greg Delaney, 4 4-7-12; Jason Barrows, ; Eddie Ray Cotton, 2 0-2-4; Tim French, 4 3-4-11; Dereck Musson, 1 1-2-3. Totals: 16 8-15-40.

R.S 15 7 12 4–38

GMU 10 10 8 12–40

Fouled out: none. Three-point goals: (RS) Tanner 2, Boss 1, Gardner 2.

Sidney 46, Oxford 37

SIDNEY – Sidney beat Oxford for the second time in a week, and did so by nearly the exact same score, Tuesday night in Class C sectional play.

After Oxford scored the first seven points of the third quarter, Sidney blanked the Blackhawks the final minutes of the stanza, and closed the game on a 23-7 run.

Hunter Sowersby keyed an early fourth-quarter Sidney surge hitting a three ball and a deuce. Sowersby had all seven of his points in the last quarter as the Warriors outscored Oxford 16-7.

“The shots that we were making in the first half weren’t going down in the second half,” said Oxford coach Tim Davis.

A week ago, Sidney beat Oxford 46-38 in the MAC playoffs and shot 12-for-15 from the free throw line. Last night, Sidney was again 12-for-15 from the free throw line. Mike Ward led the winners with 13 points.

Andrew Golden scored 14 for Oxford, who finish the season with a 10-9 record.

Oxford: Justin Schray, 3 0-0-6; Ryan Moore, 2 1-2-5 ; Andrew Golden, 6 0-0-14; Paul Wonka, 0 0-2-0; Kevin Davis, 0; Cam Heggie, 1 1-2-4; Eric Dilfer, 4 0-0-8. Totals: 16 2-6-37.

Sidney: Hunter Sowersby, 2 2-2-7; Snow, 0; Damian Zimmer, 4 0-0-8; Jon Wingate, 1 0-0-2; Mike Ward, 4 5-5-13; Bill Kozak, 2 3-5-8; Brandon Walters, 1 1-1-3; Mike Cruz, 1 1-2-3; Joe Matzel, 1 0-0-2. Totals: 16 12-15-46 .

Oxf. 9 14 7 7–37

Sidn. 11 12 7 16–46

Fouled out: none. Sowersby, Kozak. (O) Golden 2, Heggie.

Union Springs 56, Bainbridge-Guilford 50

BAINBRIDGE – Bainbridge-Guilford’s first home sectional playoff game in several years ended in a first-round loss Tuesday night against Union Springs.

B-G trailed by nine at halftime, but closed to within two points in the final quarter. Union Springs’ McKenzie Brady scored eight in the final stanza to help hold off the Bobcats. Brady finished with a game-high 23 points. “We just didn’t do a good job of defending the interior,” said B-G coach Greg Warren. “Offensively, we adjusted some things in the second half, and that made a big difference.”

Brooks Harmon scored 12 of B-G’s 14 points in the third quarter, and closed with 20 points in his team’s season finale. Austin Bauerle added 14 points, nine rebounds, and five assists.

“Overall, if you look at last year to this year, I’m pleased with the results,” Warren said. “We made a big improvement, and the kids felt like they became a contender. We lose Ryan (Porter) and a big reserve (Ray Frederick), but I think we will continue to improve.”

US: Steve Hewitt, 3 0-2-7; Nick Tabone, 0 1-2-1; Mitch Hares, 8 1-5-18; McKenzie Brady, 10 3-5-23; Jake Spina, 0; Cody Halverson, 0; Dustin Albino, 0; Kyle Milliman, 3 0-0-7. Totals: 24 5-14-56.