Fitch takes ECC Division II lead with win over Windham
Jan. 12—GROTON — Fitch's confidence is growing with every game.
And that's bad news for the rest of the Eastern Connecticut Conference Division II boys' basketball programs.
The Falcons remained undefeated in their division with an impressive 64-50 win over Windham, the CIAC Division V defending state champion.
They played hard and played together.
"I just feel like the kids have belief in what they're doing, and they definitely believe in themselves," Fitch coach Charles Silvan said. "We were talking to them about that before the game.
"When you're reviewing the film, you can see that all the kids are looking for each other and what they do well."
A fiercely competitive heart and all-out hustle carried Fitch (7-2, 6-0), which seized control in the third quarter.
Senior Mikey Wagner led the charge with 21 points while JJ Robinson chipped in nine points, six assists and five steals, Zander Timmerman had eight points and Jacob Francis added eight points and five blocks.
The game pitted the two primary contenders in Division II regular season title.
"They were undefeated in our division," Wagner said. "If we would have lost that game, we would have been in second place. I'm glad we got the win. We're in first place now and we're ready for the next game."
Travis Mangual helped keep Windham close, scoring 27 points.
The physical game took its toll on Windham (6-3, 3-1), which had two players leave the game with injuries.
"We got outplayed and outhustled," Windham coach Paul Martineau said. "We didn't share the ball and we turned it over too much. That's not how you win ball games.
"I knew coming into this that they're very physical and aggressive. That's what we expected and practiced for, but we didn't execute our game plan."
It took about a quarter for the Falcons to settle down and handle Windham's pressure. They missed their first nine shots, committed six turnovers and trailed 7-1 before scoring their first field goal.
Fitch started to feed off its aggressive defense and turned turnovers into baskets.
"That's part of our identity, so we try to build on that," Silvan said. "Our kids feel like the longer the game goes on, the stronger they get."
Holding a three-point lead after the first possession of the second half, the Falcons kicked into overdrive.
Wagner's stole the ball and converted a layup and also buried a 3-pointer to help fuel a 9-0 spurt that pushed the lead to 34-22.
It was one of five 3-pointers by Wagner.
"I put a lot of work in during the summer time with coach Silvan," Wagner said. "Just a lot of effort."
The Falcons never let up and held off a challenge from the Whippets, who cut the gap to three with six minutes left before fading again. They led by as many as 14.
Fitch walked off the court with a hard-earned win in the first of two meetings between the two teams this season.
"Our kids are playing with tremendous effort," Silvan said. "What we're trying to do with them is get them to play with tremendous self-belief because that's what we're driving for.
"What you saw in the second and third quarter were some confident kids."
