February 28, 2009 by Hank Russell, Patchogue Medford News There is only one rule in the playoffs: Win or go home. At the Suffolk County AA quarterfinal game on February 24, the Patchogue-Medford boys varsity basketb...
October 9, 2008 by Hank Russell, Patchogue Medford News Sitting tied for third place alongside Central Islip, Sachem East, Ward Melville and Walt Whitman in Division I, the Patchogue-Medford High School varsity foot...
| OT Loss Knocks P-M Boys Hoops Out of Playoffs |
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February 28, 2009 There is only one rule in the playoffs: Win or go home. At the Suffolk County AA quarterfinal game on February 24, the Patchogue-Medford boys varsity basketball team stayed around a little longer against top-seeded Longwood, who kept the Raiders around that night, only to act as rude guests by showing the ninth-seeded Raiders the door, defeating Patchogue-Medford, 61-59, in overtime. With 50 seconds left, Patchogue-Medford (16-4) led Longwood (18-3) by a score of 59-55. But Tajric Boggs, who scored 15 points for Longwood, put in the last four points in regulation to force overtime. Kyle Weeks scored the game-winning bucket with two seconds left in overtime. Senior guard Marcus Stroman led all scorers with 19 points in the loss. “You’ve got to give credit to Longwood,” said Coach John Baumiller. “They didn’t have one weakness. It’s difficult to stop a team without any weaknesses. They were too good.” Baumiller reiterated how all the games against the top-tier competition in League I had been close all season, even when the Radiers lost two previous times to Longwood. Because of that, he said he thought that his team could possibly score an upset in the playoffs and move on to face Bay Shore in the semifinals. However, that did not happen. “I think there was a little bit of disappointment,” he said. “Going in, we didn’t lose to anyone twice, except Longwood and Brentwood. I felt our kids were good enough to win the county championships. … If we won the game, we’d be halfway there [to the championship].” As Baumiller said, only one team can win. “When you lose in the playoffs, one team goes home unhappy,” he said. “I felt our kids really played their hearts out.” Next year, six of the 11 current members will return. Stroman and two-year starter Jordan Jackson will be lost to graduation, but 6-foot-8 junior forward Nick Sergio will return for one more year. “It was a great year,” Baumiller said. “I was disappointed in the fact that [the season] couldn’t have lasted a little longer.” |
