March 16 was already marked down on the Schenectady Christian School calendar as a day off for students while teachers went in for a professional advancement day.
Now, professional advancement day has been postponed so the teachers can join the students in Glens Falls to watch the boys basketball team play in its first-ever state tournament.
The Falcons (24-1) defeated Section X champion Brushton-Moira and Section VII champ Seton Catholic of Plattsburgh last weekend to win the regional class C title and advance to Friday’s state semifinal against Section IV champion Sidney at the Glens Falls Civic Center.
Needless to say, basketball fever has struck the small Scotia-based school, which has never had a team play in a state tournament.
There’s certainly a lot of excitement in the school, said Schenectady Christian coach Chad Bowman. `The challenge for the boys is to stay focused on what they have to do.`
Sidney will be a handful for the Falcons to deal with. Bowman said the Warriors ` ranked second in the state ` feature a veteran lineup and pride themselves on being a strong defensive team.
`They start five seniors, and any time you play a team with five seniors, they pretty much know what they want to do at both ends of the court,` said Bowman.
This is not to say the fifth-ranked Falcons don’t stand a chance. Like Sidney, Schenectady Christian has a starting lineup of players who can score from anywhere on the court, and the Falcons have been through enough tight playoff games to know how to handle pressure.
`One of the strengths of this team is that we’ve been able to perform well as a team,` said Bowman. `We won’t overwhelm anybody with our talent, so we have to play well as a team. That’s not to say we don’t have talent. We just don’t have that one overwhelming player.`
Schenectady Christian might not have one overwhelming player, but it does possess a strong one-two punch in senior center Matt McCarty and junior forward Jake Bowman. The duo helped the Falcons avoid an early exit in last Friday’s regional semifinal against Brushton-Moira by combining to score 52 points in Schenectady Christian’s 70-56 victory. McCarty had 31 points and 16 rebounds, and Bowman netted 12 of his 21 points during a 20-8 fourth quarter run that allowed the Falcons to break open a close game.
`That was a very athletic Brushton team,` coach Bowman said. `That was a great game for us to be involved in.`
Other Schenectady Christian players can step up, too. Junior guard Bryan Bishop drained six three-pointers on his way to a 22-point performance in the Falcons’ 60-50 victory over Seton Catholic Saturday in Potsdam. Bowman contributed 18 points, and McCarty added 13 points and 10 rebounds in a game Schenectady Christian led by as many as 17 points.
With a balanced attack that also includes senior guard Jared Kulbako and sophomore guard Kelsey Collins, Schenectady Christian will try to knock off Sidney and advance to Saturday’s state final against either Section VIII champion Friends Academy of Locust Valley (Nassau County) or Section V champion Campbell-Savona.
`We’re just trying to build on the successes of the past,` said coach Bowman. `It’s exciting to get to the next level.“