Sawyer Devoe drops 30, sends Avoca/Prattsburgh basketball to state semifinals

BUFFALO — Avoca/Prattsburgh finally got its chance at a Far West Regional game.

And the Vikings made the most of it.

After recently winning Section V titles without a state tournament to advance to, Sawyer Devoe's 30-point performance led the Vikings to a 78-56 win over Westfield (Section VI) in Saturday's New York State Public High School Athletic Association Class D quarterfinals at Buffalo State College.

"To have this opportunity for these seniors going forward is incredible," Vikings coach Brian Putnam said.

The other Section V small schools didn't fare as well against Section VI, though.

In Class C, Zach Colvin's 31 points powered Avon's fourth quarter surge, but it was too little too late. Salamanca clipped the Vikings 61-59.

Scoring was at a premium in Class B, but Tyler Curran and Allegany-Limestone managed to defeat Newark 45-30.

What's next?

Avoca/Prattsburgh (25-0) will take its 36-game winning streak into state semifinals, which begin Friday, March 18, at Cool Insuring Arena. The Vikings will play the winner of Sunday's Oppenheim-Ephratah/St. Johnsville (Section VII) versus Seton Catholic (Section II) region final.

Avon (22-4) and Newark's (18-7) seasons are over.

Key moments

Avoca/Prattsburgh's Sawyer Devoe scored 14 of his game-high 30 points in the fourth quarter of the Class D contest.

He owned the middle of Westfield's 2-3 zone for easy buckets or passes to the perimeter. Pacey Hopkins scored 25 points and paced the offense. Abbot Haden joined the party and drained four 3-pointers for 14 points.

"They gave us the middle where Sawyer could have a field day," coach Putnam said. "He's a good decision maker. If they collapse, Abbot and Pacey and our outside shooters knocked down shots. ... Pacey is definitely our overall leader. He knows exactly what he needs to do."

Defensively, A-P's trap didn't force many turnovers, but it slowed down Westfield's top scorers. Darien Swanson scored 18 points in the loss.

Late in the fourth of the Class C game, Colvin drained four straight free throws to give Avon's Braves (22-4) a 59-58 lead with 1:24 left. The 6-foot-3 lefty owned the paint. He scored 11 in the first, eight in the second, four in the third and eight in the fourth. Colvin also made all 10 of his free throws.

However, Avon's 12-0 run ended when Andy Herrick's 3 late in the shot clock gave Salamanca a two-point lead with 24.5 seconds remaining.

Avon was unable to get a shot off in the final seconds. Jack Browne was whistled for a controversial travel call with 11.7 seconds left. But after Halrey Hoag missed the frontend of a one-and-one, the Braves advanced the ball with 2.4 seconds remaining, but failed to get a shot off.

Salamanca's Lucas Brown was lights out in the first half and finished with 30 points on five 3s. Avon's Lee Hartke limited Brown to just six points in the second half, and a full court trap helped get the Braves back in it.

Avon coach Rob Fries praised Hartke and Michael Rowland for their 3-pointers that began the comeback, as well as point guard Andrew Rowland, who scored nine points. Jack Browne scored seven points.

Fries said he wish he would have pressed sooner, but didn't want to get in a footrace with the Warriors.

"I give them a lot of credit. They kept playing and playing, they never got down, and just kept battling," Fries said, who's guided the Braves to three consecutive Section V titles.

Newark coach Henry Kuperus' Reds struggled to score. They only scored seven in the first and trailed 19-12 at halftime.

Big men Raeshawn Howard and Isaiah Camp led Newark with nine points each. High-scoring guard Brayden Steve was clearly keyed on and was limited to five points.

Curran was seemingly unguardable for Allegany-Limestone. He scored 22 points, made two 3-pointers, drove to the rim with ease, and made 8 of 11 free throws to send the Gators to the final four.

Email Marquel Slaughter at mslaughter1@gannett.com and follow his Twitter @MarquelSports. Sign up for our high school sports newsletter.

This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: NYSPHSAA Far West Regionals Section V boys basketball