|
Article Audio:
|
GLENS FALLS — The Lansingburgh Knights got out to a strong start against Amsterdam on Wednesday night in the Section II Class A semifinals, but the Rams weren’t down for long.
“We came out a little sluggish, a little slow, but we stayed in the fight,” said Amsterdam senior guard Ceasar Thompson. “At halftime, we saw what we were doing wrong. We came out with more energy, more talking and better passing.”
After mounting an early comeback, the Rams overtook the Knights in the second quarter and maintained a slight edge going into the half. A dominant third quarter propelled Amsterdam to a 75-63 victory, punching their ticket to the Class A championship game.
“I haven’t gotten this far in all my four years of high school,” said Rams’ senior Jhai Vellon. “It’s great to be in the sectional finals.”
Thompson led Amsterdam in scoring with 28 points, including five 3-pointers. He also collected five rebounds, two steals and two blocks.
Vellon tacked on 20 points, with five rebounds, two steals and three assists. JaShean Vann added eight points, seven rebounds and four steals.
Amsterdam outscored Lansingburgh 24-9 in the third quarter, taking control of the game.
“Our intensity was really high coming out after halftime. We all wanted to win so bad,” Vellon said. “We knew what to do since coach was going over their defense and what they were trying to do. We hit a lot of big shots and made some big defensive plays that really boosted our intensity.”
“We feed off each other,” Thompson added, who banked in a buzzer-beating 3-pointer to end the third. “Our energy, our intensity is everything.”
The stage is set for the Class A final on Saturday at the Cool Insuring Arena between top-seeded Amsterdam (21-1), of the Foothills Council, and No. 3 Troy (12-10), of the Suburban Council.
“We have two days to prepare for Saturday. We just have to play together and grind it out,” Thompson said of Troy. “It’s going to be a battle, a dogfight. Whoever wants it most will come get it.
“They’re all dogs, just like us. They’re going to come to compete and give us their best game and we’re going to have to fight it out.”
The Flying Horses defeated No. 2 Hudson Falls on Wednesday in their semifinal contest, 53-50.
The Rams most recently played for a sectional basketball title in 2018, when they fell to Mohonasen. Their last Section II championship came in 1995, a year they were the NYS Class B runner-up to Section I’s Poughkeepsie.
Amsterdam 18 17 24 16 — 75
Lansingburgh 19 13 9 22 — 63
Amsterdam scoring: Vann 4-0-8, Dueno 3-0-7, Thompson 9-5-28, Vellon 8-4-20, Bartone 3-1-7, Miller 2-1-5. Lansingburgh scoring: McIntyre 6-0-15, Green 7-0-15, Huff 1-0-3, Hardt 2-0-4, Green 5-5-15, Payne 1-0-2, Angley 1-0-2, Oliver 2-3-7. Team totals: Amsterdam 29-11-75, Lansingburgh25-8-63.
