The Canton varsity boys basketball team improved to 3-0 in the Northern Athletic Conference Central Division with wins over Malone on Friday and Massena on Tuesday.
Friday’s nights contest in Malone was tightly contested until the end, with the Golden Bears hanging on for a 49-45 victory, while Canton’s offense started clicking and combined with a suffocating defensive effort in a 54-38 win over the Raiders on Tuesday in Canton.
The Golden Bears, who have won three straight after losing their first two games of the season, go on the road to Gouverneur on Friday night; opening tip against the Wildcats is scheduled for 7:15 p.m.
Canton 49, Malone 45
Canton never trailed on Friday night, but Malone responded every time it appeared the Golden Bears would run away with the contest. Zadok Roiger helped the Golden Bears build a 14-7 lead on eight points in the first six minutes of the game, but Malone closed the frame on a 5-0 run to cut the lead to two points.
Canton once again built a seven-point advantage in the second quarter, leading 23-16, but Malone came back to tie the game with just one second remaining in the first half, 29-29, on a pair of free throws by Zendann Poirier.
The Golden Bears looked like they might pull away from the Huskies, leading 43-34 halfway through the third quarter, but Malone closed the quarter with a 6-2 run to cut the lead to 45-40.
Neither team was able to generate much offensively in the fourth quarter, with both teams scoring just four points.
Senior Ryan Jones led the Bears with 20 points; Talan Green added 14 points, and Roiger chipped in 10.
Ian Mulverhill led Malone (3-1 overall, 1-1 NAC Central) with nine points.
Canton 54, Massena 38
After a tight first quarter, Canton pulled away in the second, outscoring Massena 16-5 to take a 28-15 lead going into halftime. The Golden Bears then scored the first six points of the third quarter to build a 34-15 lead, and the Raiders (2-2, 0-2) were unable to trim the lead to single digits for the remainder of the game.
Jones once again led the Bears with 19 points, while junior center Jackson Ames added a career-best 14. Roiger scored seven points, and junior forward John Wilcox scored three points and had several key rebounds and steals in quality minutes off the bench after Ames picked up two fouls in the first quarter and had to sit for the remainder of the first half.
Another highlight of the game was Canton’s success on the free throw line, where they converted 9-of-10 attempts for a season-best 90% performance from the charity stripe.
Massena’s Taylor Mitchell led all scorers with 21 points.