Saturday Basketball: Gananda scurries past Lady Lions behind torrent 3rd quarter run to score snowy 57-43 home win; C-R boys bounce back behind Brooks, Wight in victory at Oswayo Valley

GANANDA — Old Man Winter made his presence felt all day long on Saturday. Vast sheets of snow shrouded and plastered the entire Southern Tier, making commuting a little difficult for some. Amongst those in travel: The Lady Lions of Wellsville, who made the trek north just outside of Rochester to visit the Gananda Lady Blue Panthers — one of Class C1’s top dogs.

While the blankets were falling outside, the first of two titanic matchups for Wellsville took the spotlight on the hardwood indoors. The first eight minutes between the two foes was filled with an effervescent amount of scoring. The majority of which were responses to corresponding baskets, as the battle witnessed the Lady Lions claim a four-point edge.

Gananda remained stride for stride with the Lady Lions all the way to the end of the first half, but thanks to a strong end, they carried their propulsion over to the second half and started it by running the table.

To start the last 16 minute strophe, the Lady Blue Panthers grooved to the right tune on the dance floor, as they started off with nine straight points to overtake Wellsville in the driver’s seat, ultimately for good, as they wrapped up the third quarter with all the momentum off their game-changing jaunt of the Lady Lions to lay claim on a 57-43 home win.

The pace settled with a torrent and constant opening chapter between Wellsville (7-3) and Gananda, as both teams combined to record 38 points across the frame. For the Lady Lions, five different scorers all pitched in to aid the efforts to remain side-by-side with the Lady Blue Panthers throughout, as they scored the quarter’s last four points to break a 17-17 tie and morph it into a four-point lead going into the second.

While the offenses went at full force to start, it was now the defense’s turn to buckle in to close out the half, as the teams held one another in check. That would allow the visitors in black and orange to continue holding the 28-25 lead going into the break, but not before the Lady Blue Panthers built one final burst of energy to carry over by finishing with six of the half’s last 10 points.

In the third quarter, a completely different narrative. It was Gananda’s turn to take over.

The Lady Blue Panthers caught fire right at the start by rattling off nine straight points to eventually snag the lead away from Wellsville’s grasp, as they now positioned themselves at the top with a 34-28 lead, extending upon it even further with what formulated into an 18-9 doubling-up of the Lady Lions across the entire frame.

The majority of those points were gathered by Eva Jenny, who posted 18 of her game-high 32 points in the second half to ignite the Lady Blue Panthers to ultimate success. The run they created would serve as their game-changing moment, as Gananda went on to claim victory with one more strong finish in the last eight minutes to keep the Lady Lions in the rearview mirror for good.

Despite the defeat, Wellsville saw three different scorers all eclipse double figures on the stat sheet. Heading the efforts was Averee Palmatier and her team-high 13 points. Natalie Adams and Makenna Dunbar each had 10 points to chip in, with Adams recording seven rebounds and six assists, while Dunbar completed a double-double with 11 rebounds to round off the special teams contributions.

Prior to the Varsity contest, the Wellsville Lady Lions JV squad started off the day with a strong 40-24 win over Gananda. Leading the charge in the victory was Reegan Perkins, as she posted 17 points.

The Lady Lions are now off until next weekend, when they now get set to head for the Orvis Activities Center on the confines of Alfred State College to help open up the eighth installment of the Dan Barkley Showcase with the tournament’s preluding event — the Sheriff’s Classic, where they square off against their longtime rival: The Hornell Lady Red Raiders.

Tip-off is set for a 6 p.m. start on Friday.

Wellsville 21 7 9 6 – 43

Gananda 17 8 18 14 – 57

WELLSVILLE: Caelyn Stevens 1 1-1 4, Natalie Adams 2 4-6 10, Averee Palmatier 6 1-1 13, Makenna Dunbar 3 4-8 10, Jaden Dunbar 3 0-0 6. Totals: 15 10-16 43.

GANANDA: Leah Buffan 2 2-4 7, Nyah Cruz 1 0-0 2, Eva Jenny 12 7-8 32, Nicole Cruz 2 0-1 4, Madison Dohse 4 0-2 8, Ana VanAntwerp 2 0-0 4. Totals: 23 9-15 57.

3-point goals: Wellsville 3 (Adams 2, Stevens), Gananda 2 (Buffan, Jenny).
Total Fouls: Wellsville 13, Gananda 15. Fouled out: None.

BOYS BASKETBALL

Cuba-Rushford 40, Oswayo Valley 29

SHINGLEHOUSE, Pa. — It was not easy by any means, but after a snowy trip down below the border to visit Oswayo Valley on Saturday, the Rebels of Cuba-Rushford were able to get back on the right side of the tracks behind the guidance of Braeden Wight in the first half and Luke Brooks in the next, as they surfed past the Green Wave with a 40-29 win to hop back above .500 on the season.

“We started slow again and we have to figure that out going forward,” Rebels coach Pat Wight said. “It was a very physical game, and we didn’t take care of the ball. Fortunately enough, we were able to make some of the right shots and escape with the win. Credit to Oswayo Valley, they played extremely hard and they never quit.”

Through the opening quarter, the Rebels (6-5) exchanged early glances with the Green Wave from inside, with Wight and Peyton Joy coming together to score eight of the team’s 12 points to help seize a 12-8 lead. The momentum continued into the second for the visitors in blue and maroon, as they branched their lead to nine after another advantageous jaunt sparked by the inside game once more.

With a 25-16 advantage, it was time for Brooks to rise to the occasion for the Rebels, as he helped put a lock on the victory with with 10 of his game-high 12 points all in the second half — eight of them in the third quarter, while the defense in transition held Oswayo Valley to just five points off a pair of field goals.

Following Brooks and Wight were Kaden Bell, Finn Ricketts, Adam Roe and Peyton Joy — all recording four points each to further the Cuba-Rushford cause.

The Rebels hit the road again Wednesday night for a 7:30 p.m. visit to Houghton Academy.

Cuba-Rushford 12 13 11 4 – 40

Oswayo Valley 8 8 5 8 – 29

CUBA-RUSHFORD: Braeden Wight 4 1-2 10, Kaden Bell 2 0-0 4, Luke Brooks 5 2-2 12, Dean Frank 0 0-2 0, Finn Ricketts 2 0-0 4, Tristan Clayson 1 0-2 2, Adam Roe 2 0-0 4, Peyton Joy 2 0-0 4. Totals: 18 3-8 40.
OSWAYO VALLEY: Brayden Wiley 1 0-0 3, Dawson Welch 1 0-0 3, Landon Flurschutz 2 1-2 6, Dain Lyons 0 0-2 0, Nik Bonney 2 0-0 4, Isaiah Goode 3 0-0 6, Conner Resig 0 3-4 3, Gabe Mundt 2 0-0 4. Totals: 11 4-8 29.

3-point goals: C-R 1 (Wight), OV 3 (Wiley, Welch, Flurschutz).
Total Fouls: C-R 16, OV 15. Fouled out: None.