The boys basketball team faced off against the August Martin Falcons. In spite of a scoring run late in the fourth quarter, the game ended with a 43-54 loss to the Falcons.
The team went into the game on January 13th coming off of two tough away games, both of which they lost. Already on a three game losing streak, the Hawks entered Tuesday’s game desperate for a win.
The game’s first half began with both the Falcons and the Hawks struggling to score. Offensive coordination seemed to be completely out of sync for both teams as turnovers plagued them throughout the two quarters. Steals constantly filled stat lines, but points were nowhere to be seen. A field goal was finally scored at the six minute mark of the first quarter when senior Jason Nieh scored an open three point shot from the corner. The shot opened up scoring for both teams; however, August Martin quickly created a 23-11 lead by the end of the half because of a 12 point scoring run. The Hawks concluded the quarter with a buzzer-beating three point shot which cut the Falcons lead to 23-14.
The second half of the game would continue in a similar fashion. Both teams continued to struggle to maintain possession of the ball. The Falcons, despite being plagued with fouls during the 3rd quarter, continued to build on their lead while the Hawks continued their struggle to score. With a 22-38 deficit going into the 4th quarter, the Hawks tightened their offense and defense in hopes of slowing down the Falcons. Late in the quarter, Jason ignited the team to with two more three point shots. The run would cut the Falcon lead from 20 points to 9. Unfortunately the burst came too late, and the Hawks fell to the Falcons 43-54.
After the game, coach Frank DeNunzio commented that the team competed well against August Martin. “They played hard and we saw some good plays” especially considering that the team was missing key players such as seniors Milan Majstorovic and Patryck Wadolowski. Although they lost, coach DeNunzio noted that the game saw a “phenomenal performance from Jason Nieh” as well as Freshman Jonathan Mea and Freshman Nicholas Corrado. When asked how this game affected the team, the coach replied, “It’s been a tough season and things haven’t been working out. As a team we’re still growing and hopefully things will come together before the playoffs.”
When asked about the team’s issue with turnovers, Jason Nieh explained that since the “starting lineup was different without Milan… things were unfamiliar” which led to “poor execution of plays.”
Senior Rahul Chandra agreed, concluding that August Martin’s “speed and athleticism also got to [the team]” which enabled the Falcons to “act quick” upon the mistakes made by the team while executing plays.
