Canton 39, Heuvelton 30
The Bears gutted out a defensive battle on Jan. 3 in the Houli Dome to take down the fourth ranked team in the state for class D, the Heuvelton Bulldogs. The final score of this contest was 39-30 in favor of the Golden Bears.
This was a highly anticipated game, as Canton faced off against Heuvelton last year in the Overall Section X championship with the Bears taking home the win. Canton had the Bulldogs in an offensive struggle on this night, with them taking 25 three-pointers and only making two. Canton’s combination of a strong full court press which turns into a two-three zone as the plays develops, and their strong and aggressive man defense had the Bulldogs lost on the offensive end. Starting center for the Bears, Ayomi Odetoyimbo was a rock for the Bears in the center of the zone, preventing the Bulldogs from getting easy shots around the rim. It proved evident on the stat sheet, where he finished with six blocks. Overall the Bears strong defense was what propelled them to this big win against a strong Heuvelton team.
Canton 65, Salmon River 30
The Bears capped off an undefeated week with a win against the Shamrocks on Jan. 5. It was an all around effort for the Bears, as they shot it well from the arc all night. And this good shooting performance for the Bears proved to be the nail in the coffin for Salmon River.
The starting five for the Bears really set the tone early, slashing their way to the basket and finishing with confidence as well as moving the ball very well around the perimeter to get good open shots. Senior Captain James Bailey was asked how he thought these win will help his team’s confidence as the season develops.
“Both of these wins are good for out team’s confidence as a whole, the team works hard every day in practice and it’s just starting to show in our record as of recent,” Bailey remarked. “And now it’s time to finish this next stretch of the season strong.”
Many players got into the action for the Bears on Thursday night which polished off the Shamrocks.
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