The Mohonasen boys basketball team has developed a bad habit of blowing fourth quarter leads.
The latest example came in last Friday’s Kirvin Cup Tournament championship game, as Lansingburgh rallied from a seven-point deficit to beat the Mighty Warriors 55-50 in overtime.
Lansingburgh trimmed Mohonasen’s seven-point lead to 38-34 by the end of the third quarter and out-scored the Mighty Warriors (2-5) 21-12 in the fourth quarter and overtime to pull out the victory. Darnell Sutton’s three-pointer in the closing seconds of regulation tied the score at 48-48.
It was Mohonasen’s third overtime loss of the season and the fourth loss where it entered the fourth quarter with the lead.
“We’re not the ones forcing overtime. So obviously, we’re not closing out when we should have,” said Mohonasen coach Ken Dagostino.
Senior forward Grant Massaroni was Mohonasen’s go-to scorer in the championship game. Massaroni – who averages 21 points per game – drained four three-pointers on his way to a 20-point night. Senior Joe DeLuca contributed 14 points.
Malik Miller netted six of his team-high 16 points in overtime for Lansingburgh.
Mohonasen opened the Kirvin Cup with a 67-34 victory over crosstown rival Schalmont last Thursday. The Mighty Warriors pulled away from the Sabres (5-3) with a 38-15 second-half run.
Massaroni netted 16 points, and senior guard Nick Rapp added 12 points to lead a balanced Mohonasen attack. Senior forward Dominic Caputo had 15 points for Schalmont.
The Sabres bounced back from their loss to their Rotterdam brethren by beating Bishop Gibbons 61-49 in last Friday’s consolation game.
Junior guard Lucas Curtin scored 21 points for Schalmont. Caputo went 11-for-11 from the free throw line on his way to a 17-point night, and senior center Nick Daversa added 13 points.
Schalmont and Mohonasen returned to league action Friday. Schalmont visited Ravena-Coeymans-Selkirk in a Colonial Council game, while Mohonasen traveled to Ballston Spa for a Suburban Council contest.
Dagostino said he’s hoping his team can turn things around during the second half of the season.
“The effort has been commendable,” said Dagostino. “It’s just the fundamentals that we need to work on. We need to cut down on our turnovers and our fouls.”