Try as it might, Colonie had no answer for Guilderland’s Matt Cerutti and Marc DuMoulin.
The two forwards combined to score 34 points and haul in numerous rebounds to lead the Dutchmen past the Garnet Raiders 71-57 in Friday’s Suburban Council South Division game in Colonie.
`I didn’t realize how much they’d crush us inside,` said Colonie coach Jim Boland. `Cerutti and DuMoulin absolutely crushed us tonight. We couldn’t hold them to one shot (per possession).`
`Matt brings in long arms … and Marc has very good jumping ability. He showed that last year,` said Guilderland coach Ron Osinski. `And (Andrew) Platek can rebound the ball very well, too, even though he plays out there (at guard).`
Nolan Smith had 23 points for Colonie (0-3), but he was the only Garnet Raider to reach double digits in scoring. By contrast, Guilderland (3-0) had three in double figures — Cerutti (19 points), DuMoulin (15 points) and Vincent Simeone (16 points).
`He’s a great shooter,` Boland said of Smith. `The problem is he’s only 5-9, 5-10 (in height). When other teams decide to double him, he has to find other guys to get the ball to.`
Colonie built a 20-14 lead in the first quarter on contributions from Smith, Ryan Nicholson and Nick Donato. But Guilderland responded with an 18-2 run that stretched from late in the first quarter through the early stages of the second quarter, and the Dutchmen never trailed again. By halftime, Guilderland had a 47-33 advantage.
`I don’t think we came out with good defensive pressure … and they made us pay early on,` said Osinski. `They had a couple of close losses (to start the season), and I think they were excited to play us. I think we had to weather the storm.`
A Smith three-pointer helped Colonie trim Guilderland’s lead to 55-45 in the third quarter. However, fast-break layups by Simeone and Platek sparked a 7-0 run that put the Dutchmen ahead 62-45. The closest Colonie got to Guilderland after that was 14 points.
`We hung around. We kept it down to 10, 14 points, but we just couldn’t get over the hump,` said Boland.
Colonie will try to give Boland his first win as varsity head coach Tuesday when it hosts Ballston Spa. Meanwhile, Guilderland puts its undefeated record on the line Saturday when it meets defending Federation Class A champion Albany Academy in a non-league contest.