The Guilderland boys basketball team ended a 16-day layoff with another double-digit victory, but Niskayuna made the Dutchmen work for it.
Guilderland (6-0) used a 16-3 run in the fourth quarter to pull away for an 81-70 win against Niskayuna (1-4) in Saturday’s Suburban Council game.
The Silver Warriors were within four points early in the fourth quarter before Vincent Simeone’s three-pointer kickstarted the run that sealed the Dutchmen’s victory.
`That’s what propelled us to the victory,` said Guilderland coach Ron Osinski.
`We were off for 16 days, and we were a little rusty as you could see,` said sophomore guard Andrew Platek, who led all scorers with 29 points. `But it was good to get out and shake the rust off.`
Guilderland built a 26-15 lead in the first quarter behind big efforts from Platek and Billy Floyd. Platek netted 13 points in the period, and Floyd added nine points.
`We were shooting well in practice (Friday) — the whole team was,` said Platek. `And it carried over to today’s game.`
Aaron Gordon refused to allow Niskayuna to fade away. The senior guard made five three-pointers and finished with 27 points as he helped the Silver Warriors trim Guilderland’s lead to 59-55 within the first minute of the fourth quarter.
`It seemed like there was nothing we could do,` said Platek. `I’d get out there (to defend Gordon) with my hand up, and he’d still make the shot.`
`That’s what he does,` said Niskayuna coach Bryan Mattice. `He makes his shots, and he makes plays at both ends of the floor.`
But, there was little Niskayuna could do to slow down Guilderland’s attack. Between Platek, Floyd (13 points), Simeone (16 points) and Marc DuMoulin (12 points), there were too many shooters for the Silver Warriors to defend.
`They’re talented and so well coached,` said Mattice. `It was nice to see our guys fight and compete the way they did, but Ron (Osinski) has a good team there.`
`I told myself we were not going to lose this game,` said Platek. `I felt that we weren’t going to let Niskayuna beat us.`
Guilderland won’t have to worry about any 16-day layoffs from here on out. The Dutchmen are on a Tuesday-Friday schedule every week until the start of the Section II Class AA playoffs.
`I’m glad we got it out in this game and got the chance to play today,` said Osinski. `The guys said they didn’t feel they were really in the flow of the game.`
The Dutchmen’s next challenge is a Tuesday road trip to surprising Ballston Spa. The Scotties (6-2) recently had a six-game win streak snapped with a 54-37 loss to Averill Park Saturday, but they sit in third place in the competitive Suburban Council North Division.
`We’ll treat it like any other game and any other team,` said Platek. `We’ll prepare and go out there, and hopefully win the game.`
