Saturday Basketball: Ricketts, C-R boys slingshot ahead of Ellicottville behind monster 2nd half to post 54-38 rebound win; Lyndonville powers past Houghton Academy behind 1st quarter barrage

ELLICOTTVILLE — A halftime talk in the locker room can provide a thunderous spark for a team to help kick the tires on the second half. That was the case for Pat Wight and his Rebels of Cuba-Rushford early Saturday morning on the road, where they fell behind quickly after an explosive second quarter from host Ellicottville.

But when the time came for the second half, it was make or break for the Rebels.

Those efforts were spearheaded by Finn Ricketts, who went off in the third quarter to bring Cuba-Rushford back to square one, reversing the momentum in their favor on both ends of the floor, including a defensive effort that saw them hold Ellicottville to just seven second half points to pull ahead and ultimately secure the 54-38 comeback victory over the road to find their way back into the win column.

“It was not a great first half by any means. We struggled taking care of the ball and had 14 turnovers in the first half alone. Ellicottville was ready to go and out-hustled us. We had a nice talk at halftime, and guys took ownership of their mistakes and really played great team defense, along with some team basketball in the second half,” Rebels coach Pat Wight said. “We got out in transition and made the extra pass against their zone. Finn really stepped up and got us started in the third quarter, Adam Roe controlled the paint with some help from Eli Sleggs. Our energy and effort really turned around and we were able to walk out with a big win.”

The Rebels (12-5) were able to put their right foot through the door to start the first opening eight minute session on the hardwood, as they captured a lead that saw them score seven of the game’s first nine points. Despite Ellicottville chipping away little by little across the remainder of time in the frame, Cuba-Rushford remained in firm control of their destiny with a 15-11 advantage into the second quarter.

In the last eight minute sequence before halftime, the Eagles shifted the momentum in their favor in a big way behind a nine-point outing from Rylan Benjamin, as he sparked the offense’s gargantuan 20-8 run to overtake the Rebels in the driver’s seat with their first lead of the game going into the break.

Upon the re-emergence of both teams for the second half, that 20-8 run was nearly supplied in identical fashion — this time by Cuba-Rushford, who used an absolutely explosive third quarter from Finn Ricketts to lay the foundation down for a game-changing run of the Eagles, as his 10 consecutive points to open the frame caught both ends of the hardwood on fire.

In the midst of what was a 20-7 jaunt of Ellicottville, the Cuba-Rushford defense held down the fort all throughout the last eight minutes of play in the same swing, holding their opposition absolutely scoreless with an 11-0 game-ending run to lock down the come-from-behind victory.

Ricketts finished as the leading scorer for the Rebels, concluding the afternoon with a game-high 19 points. Adam Roe (11 rebounds, four assists) and Donovan Breckenridge (six rebounds) each posted nine points, while Eli Sleggs had six points.

Adding more special teams aid was Carter Brown, who grabbed seven rebounds. Zach Deck handed out seven assists.

The Rebels are back on the floor Monday night with a return home to the Wighthouse, as they host the Oswayo Valley Green Wave in a 7:30 p.m. contest.

Cuba-Rushford 15 8 20 11 – 54

Ellicottville 11 20 7 0 – 38

CUBA-RUSHFORD: Adam Roe 4 1-2 9, Donovan Breckenridge 4 1-3 9, Eli Sleggs 3 0-0 7, Zach Deck 1 0-0 3, Carter Brown 3 0-0 6, Finn Ricketts 8 3-3 19, Landon Hendryx 0 1-2 1. Totals: 23 6-10 54.

ELLICOTTVILLE: Rylan Benjamin 6 0-0 14, Carter Smith 2 0-0 5, Blake Smith 2 2-2 7, Parker John 0 1-2 1, Chris Polino 1 0-0 2, Dominic Polino 4 1-1 9. Totals: 15 4-5 38.

3-point goals: C-R 2 (Sleggs, Deck), Ellicottville 4 (Benjamin 2, C. Smith, B. Smith).
Total Fouls: C-R 7, Ellicottville 10. Fouled out: None.

Lyndonville 53, Houghton Academy 41

HOUGHTON — In spite of another monster performance from Jack Prentice for the Panthers of Houghton Academy, it was even more of an incendiary start for the visiting Lyndonville Tigers right from the get-go on Saturday, as they set the tone right away with their largest stand of offense to take a lead they never relinquished in what was ultimately a 53-41 road win.

Five different contributions from inside aided the Tigers to a rampant start on the offensive end, as they immediately surfaced with the game’s difference maker right in the first eight minutes of play — a 20-6 jaunt of Houghton Academy (4-12) that allowed them to score the advantage that they proceeded to cling to in the time ahead.

Although they fell behind their visiting opposition, Prentice was able to keep the Panthers in it until the final buzzer, as he pieced together a game-high 33-point performance — 14 of those points coming in the second quarter to help respond to the fast run produced by Lyndonville to start the game.

The Panthers defense would limit Lyndonville in and around the rim across the third quarter as much as they could with an 8-2 run, but the Tigers shook it off down the stretch to produce a 15-point response to remain ahead, as they warded off one last application of pressure from the hosts in white and blue to secure the win.

Following Prentice on the scoresheet was Hoang Phung, who recorded five points. Arthur Wang had Houghton Academy’s remaining three points to add into the mix.

Up next, the Panthers are back on the road Tuesday night with a 5:30 p.m. visit to The GOW School.

Lyndonville 20 16 2 15 – 53

Houghton Academy 6 15 8 12 – 41

LYNDONVILLE: Colton Smith 4 0-0 8, Lane Woodworth 7 0-2 16, Juan Alberdi 5 1-3 11, Lyric Raduns 2 0-0 5, Quincy McClinsey 4 0-0 9, Jacob Pitcher 1 0-0 2, Atticus Mank 1 0-0 2. Totals: 24 1-5 53.

HOUGHTON ACADEMY: Jack Prentice 12 5-7 33, Hoang Phung 2 0-0 5, Arthur Wang 1 1-2 3. Totals: 15 6-9 41.

3-point goals: Lyndonville 4 (Woodworth 2, Raduns, McClinsey), HA 5 (Prentice 4, Phung).
Total Fouls: Lyndonville 10, HA 5. Fouled out: None.