DRYDEN –– The Moravia boys basketball team and the IAC Small School Championship seem to go together each season. This year it was no different.
The Blue Devils won their fourth consecutive small school title Wednesday at Tompkins Cortland Community College with a 60-42 victory over Newfield.
Moravia head coach Todd Mulvaney has been at the helm of the last four title-winning teams, but the this season’s group has looked quite different than the last three. The result was the same despite that, and Mulvaney gave credit where it was due.
“I think it says a lot about the kids and the program,” Mulvaney said. “They just believe it’s part of their season each year and continue to work hard.”
Moravia came out red hot on Wednesday, with Zach Szachta knocking down a 3-pointer to open up the scoring followed by Joe Baylor hitting a triple to make it 6-0. The Blue Devils then began to attack in the paint with Jairen Francis putting consistent work in under the basket, leading to eight first-quarter points. Baylor also didn’t lose his step, scoring nine points in the first.
Six different players scored in the second quarter for Moravia, with Baylor, Francis, Szachta, Eli Landis, Dillon Palmer and Weston Walker all lighting up the scoreboard. As the Blue Devils’ offense unleashed a fury, the defense locked down Newfield, holding it to just four points in the second and 11 total in the first half.
Moravia came out slow to start the second half after holding a 34-11 halftime edge. Newfield took advantage of the Blue Devils’ letdown and quickly found itself on the upward trend. It was enough to force Mulvaney into a timeout, where he let his players hear it.
“I didn’t like our focus and energy in the third quarter on both the offensive and defensive end,” Mulvaney said. “So, we talked about a lot of that during the timeout. I thought we got complacent and Newfield jumped all over it. That’s what good teams do. They weren’t just going to roll over and let it happen.”
Though it wasn’t perfect, Moravia was able to respond and put together enough offense in the third quarter to maintain a 43-25 lead heading into the fourth.
Baylor was aggressive in the fourth, finding holes in Newfield’s defense for buckets or drawing a foul to go to the line. Moravia rallied behind its star player, who scored eight points in the fourth, and hung on for the 18-point victory.
Baylor led Moravia with 23 points, Francis followed with 12 points, Landis added nine, Palmer had seven, Szachta had five and Walker and Riley Jones each had two.
Moravia will likely host its first game of the Section IV Class C tournament, but the date and opponent of the Blue Devils’ next game will be announced today.
BOYS BASKETBALL
TULLY 69, PULASKI 37
Tully knocked down nine 3-pointers in a bounce-back win. The Black Knights scored 41 points in the second half to pull away. Connor Bastedo led the way with 22 points on four made triples.
Garrett Thompson added 17 points, Nate Best contributed eight points, Sean Mize scored seven points, Sam Dando made two threes for six points, Nate Melton recorded five points and Darrell Gables and Dan Garback both had two points for Tully.
DERUYTER 70, POLAND 65
DeRuyter avenged its earlier loss to Poland by holding off the Tornadoes. Poland outscored the Rockets 31-23 in the frame, but it wasn’t enough. DeRuyter ends its regular season with an 11-6 mark.
UPCOMING SCHEDULE
BOYS BASKETBALL
Dryden vs. Elmira Notre Dame, 8 p.m. today at Tompkins Cortland Community College
