By Kevin McCaskill Jr.
1/5/22 * 3:25 PM
(WILBRAHAM) - Last night, the Lancers from Longmeadow HS travelled northeast to play the Falcons from Minnechaug Regional HS.
Longmeadow lost their last game @ Holyoke; Minnechaug won their last game against Westfield.
The first half was tightly contested. Both teams were getting the shots they wanted. Neither team was displaying much defensive resistance. The first quarter ended tied at 15.
(Longmeadow #12 Griffin Collins meets the Falcons defense)
(AJ Miles goes up for a shot past Chris Moreno)
The second quarter was the same: back and forth. Neither team could firmly take control of the game. Both teams were getting in the lane and attempting shots close to the basket. Towards the end of the quarter, Minnechaug’s defense started to break down. Longmeadow’s Tommy McMahon made a move past a Minnechaug player at the 3-pt line and no one was there to help. McMahon glided to the basket for an easy, wide open layup.
Longmeadow had a little momentum going into the third quarter. The Lancers led the Falcons, at halftime, 31-28.
At halftime, there was a performance by the UMass-Amherst cheerleading squad. They put on a nice halftime show 👏🏾👏🏾.
In the second half, Longmeadow slowly but surely expanded their lead over Minnechaug. Longmeadow played the same game they played in the 1st but they hit more shots in the second half. Longmeadow HC Pat Murphy said his team, “executed the offense better than in the first half”.
(Ryan Mulderig assist to Luke Pasercyzk for an easy layup)
(Longmeadow #21 Will Cosgrove defends against Minnechaug’s Pat Jahn)
Minnechaug missed shots to keep them in the game. They got frustrated with some controversial calls from the referees. A player from Minnechaug received a technical foul for slamming the ball in close proximity to a referee. Another huge problem in the second half for Minnechaug was defensive rebounding. Longmeadow got two and sometimes three and four shots at the basket, in one possession.
The Lancers didn’t let the Falcons back in the game. After a close game for 20 minutes [game clock], Longmeadow pushed past Minnechaug 60-45.
Longmeadow Sophomore Griffin Collins scored a game-high 19 points for the Lancers. Collins is a player people in this area should remember and look out for 👀. He is a good shooter; he made five 3s on Tuesday. He can get to the basket. He can pass well. HC Murphy called Collins, “a fantastic offensive player”. “…[Collins] took a charge tonight…he did a great job tonight”.
(Griffin Collins shoots, contested by Pat Jahn)
(Block by Griffin Collins)
AJ Miles had 14 points and Tommy McMahon had 12 points for Longmeadow.
(Tommy McMahon hits a 3 from the right corner)
Chris Moreno scored a team-high 17 points for Minnechaug. He did everything he could to keep his team in the game.
(Chris Moreno)
(Chris Moreno)
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