Boys basketball: Tuckahoe triumphs over Leffell in Section 1 Class C semifinals, 60-31
WHITE PLAINS - The return to the Westchester County Center has brought plenty of excitement for participating teams, and even some jitters, too.
Thankfully for Tuckahoe, it didn't have to worry about that latter. The top-seeded Tigers triumphed over No. 4 seed Leffell School in wire-to-wire fashion in the Section 1 Class C semifinals on Wednesday night, winning 60-31.
"We came in focused from the start," Tuckahoe junior Chase Garcia said. "This was our goal, just to keep our foot on their necks. We've been working for this the whole season, but the job's not done yet."
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The Tigers were relentless from opening tip. Garcia and teammate Matt Angello were blistering hot offensively, netting 38 of their team's first 40 points of the game, as they built a commanding 40-12 halftime lead.
"They came and played like all-conference and all-section players," Tuckahoe coach Felix Nicodemo said. "They set the tone, and everyone else followed their lead. There's a reason why they're all-conference, all-section players."
As good as they were offensively, Tuckahoe was just as intense on the defensive end of the court. The Tigers applied team-wide heavy pressure, forced turnovers and dominated the glass. Tuckahoe didn't give up any made shots until the second quarter, but by then, it had already built up a comfortable 25-4 first-quarter lead.
"We work on mostly defense all practice," Angello said. "We wanted to shut them down on defense. Defense wins championships and defense also turns to offense. I thought it was a great job, by us, to run in transition."
While the Lions saw improved offense in the second half, the deficit was too great to overcome, and the Tigers never let up for a single minute until the final buzzer sounded.
"We had to shut them down right away," Angello said. "They can get hot. They're a great team, but we had to put our foot on their necks, like Chase said, and take it to them right away at the jump."
What it means
Tuckahoe will meet Class C rival Haldane in Saturday's Section 1 finale. They faced off in the first game of the season on Dec. 7, with the Tigers holding off the Blue Devils, 57-56, at home, so expect a thrilling championship game.
"It was a very close game, a very competitive game," Tuckahoe coach Felix Nicodemo said. "I think (Haldane) got a lot better from the last time we played them, but I think we also got better from the last time we played them as well. Our guys are really looking forward to Saturday and going against them for the gold ball."
Player of the game
Matthew Angello, Tuckahoe: The senior forward started hot and finished with 23 points, 11 rebounds, four assists, two steals and a block. 21 of his game-high 23 points came in the first half alone.
By the numbers
No. 1 Tuckahoe (14-6) — Chase Garcia had 19 points. Jameer Rivers provided plenty of hustle points, with eight boards, four assists and five steals. John Benke also had eight rebounds and two steals.
No. 4 Leffell School (8-13) — Russell Wechsler had a team-high eight points. Mitchell Breakstone, Joe Schanzer and Asher Friedland each had six points.
They said it
"It was a late start, but we were able to get a good warm-up in," Rivera said, alluding to the game's delayed 9 p.m. start. "Our teammates, coaches, everybody helped us get the win. ... Haldane was our first game of the year, they're a very good team, so we definitely have to come in focused, execute and take pride in our defense."
"This is one of the toughest places to shoot in, as we all know," Nicodemo said. "Statistics show that, so we really wanted to make sure we take high percentage shots and the backboard was friendly to us tonight."
Up next
The Tigers will play the second-seeded Haldane Blue Devils in the Section 1 Class C championship game on Saturday, which is scheduled to tip off at 12:15 p.m. at the Westchester County Center.
Follow Eugene Rapay on Twitter at @erapay5 and on Instagram at @byeugenerapay.
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Boys basketball: Tuckahoe gets wire-to-wire playoff win over Leffell
