by Ryan Mosher
It was 11½ weeks ago, or 81 days to be exact, before the Class C Sectional game on Saturday, March 3, that the Hoosick Falls boys basketball team lost to Greenwich in just their second league game of the season. Losing was not something this Panther team liked though, so off they went on a 17 game winning streak, bringing them to this championship game.
There to face them was Mechanicville, the third seed from the Colonial Council. The teams could not be more different. Mechanicville, 16-5 entering the game, rode the 24 points per game average of senior Jordan McBride through the season, while the Panthers had
three players average in double figures and played a tenacious defense. The game would be a battle as Hoosick Falls tried to contain McBride while the Red Raiders had to try to contain several Panthers at a time.
Both teams’ players were up for the challenge in the most important game of their careers. There was never a spread in the score of more than six points throughout the entire game. The two opponents always had an answer for the opposition, keeping the players and the fans on the edge of their seats.
Randy Tutunjian scored first, giving the Panthers their only lead of the game. The Red Raiders fired back with a 7-0 run that was eventually slowed by three-pointers from Alex Lilac and Tanner Williams. Mechanicville still led 14-10 after one quarter.
The second quarter was a defensive quarter which saw neither team break into double digits. McBride scored seven of his team’s nine points in the quarter, helping them hold their four point lead heading into the intermission.
The third quarter finally saw the Panther offense come back to life. Ryan Hyde followed two Matt Gormley baskets with a three-pointer from the corner to tie the game at 26-26. Unfortunately, the thorn in Hoosick Falls’ side, McBride, hit a three-pointer of his own from the top of the key to take the lead back. The Panthers then dropped down by six points again but came back and hovered around the one point mark for most of the rest of the game.
The game got really interesting around the one minute mark when Chris LaCroix hit one of two free throws to bring Hoosick Falls within one point at 39-38. The ensuing minute may have been the longest of the season. With :45 remaining Mechanicville called a timeout, only to turn the ball over five seconds later. After a Hoosick Falls timeout, the Red Raiders got the ball back when they called timeout during a loose ball scramble and the ref ruled that they had possession when timeout was called. After two Panther fouls, and with :04.8 seconds left on the clock, McBride was called for an offensive foul away from the ball before it was inbounded. This gave the Panthers one final shot to win the game. The Red Raiders put tremendous pressure on Lilac as the ball was inbounded to him, forcing him to give it up to Tutunjian. Tutunjian’s shot went a little long, and the tip-in by Hyde came after the buzzer, sending Mechanicville on to the State Regional tournament.
The Panthers, led by Gormley and Williams with 10 points each, ended their season at 20-2. Williams and Lilac were both named to the All-Tournament team. The heartbreaking loss will not be an easy one to forget, but eventually they will be able to look back and see just what an amazing season this was.
