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Schenectady
When he was not lamenting about his team’s result Tuesday night, Schenectady senior swingman T.J. Jenkins was quick to sing the praises of Saratoga.
“They are a good team. They have a lot heart,” Jenkins said of the Blue Streaks. “I know what we’re capable of. We need to come out with more intensity. We didn’t have that tonight.”
With the contest up for grabs in the fourth quarter, Saratoga overcame the limited contributions down the stretch from senior star Adam Anderson, who eventually fouled out with 2:21 remaining.
Fueled by several different sources, most notably junior forward Brian Hart, the Blue Streaks registered a 66-58 Suburban Council victory against the Patriots at the Pat Riley Center.
“It is big win. They are a really good team,” Hart said of Schenectady. “We knew coming in we’d have to fight for 32 minutes. Coach (Matt Usher) has been saying that the last few weeks. We finally did it.”
Saratoga (10-5 overall, 8-5 league) had a team meeting after dropping a 47-40 decision to Guilderland on Friday.
“He wanted us to talk about what wasn’t going right. I think that helped us,” Hart said. “Coach said we need to play as a team, that everyone on the team should be getting shots and if you are open, you have to shoot that. Everyone is capable of scoring on this team.”
“I thought the last couple of weeks we were flat and I think we needed a wake-up call,” Usher said. “It was all positive stuff because these kids are great kids, but we needed something to change. Hopefully, this is the start of a good change. We’ve seen flashes of what we can do and what we’re capable of. We just need to be more consistent.”
Saratoga did not shoot that the ball that well on the evening, yet the Blue Streaks moved the ball around to the open shooter and also managed to outrebound the Patriots (11-4, 10-4) 40-31. Leading the carom carousel was Hart, who paced Saratoga with 24 points and 18 rebounds.
“Did he really? Everyone game, he comes and gets boards,” Anderson said of Hart. “When the shots aren’t falling, you have to have people crashing. I didn’t know he had 18. That’s huge.”
“We made (rebounding) an emphasis before the game, and it came true,” Hart said. “That really helped us get the lead and Neyine keep it. I think it helped us get this win.”
Hart said the rebounding work was not as evident from the Blue Streaks in their previous few games.
Through three quarters, the teams exchanged the lead 16 times with three ties.
Jenkins, who led Schenectady with 18 points, 13 rebounds and five assists, set up Cameron Coles for a basket that knotted the score at 47.
With Anderson sitting on the bench with four fouls, Hart drove the lane and made a strong spin move that he converted to provide the Blue Streaks the lead. Hart then set up sophomore reserve Will Fox, who converted the feed.
Schenectady’s John Ryals scored, but Hart answered back with a basket and Mike Tillman later set up A.J. Lawton in the corner and the junior drained a 3-pointer as Saratoga led 56-49 with 3:40 remaining. The Patriots never shaved the deficit four points the rest of the way.
Hart delivered two of his three blocked shots over the final two minutes and snared some key boards to help secure the win.
“Brian played for us tonight on both ends of the floor with big blocks, big rebounds and he scored the ball around the rim,” Usher said. “He hit some big free throws down the stretch.”
Anderson, who finished with 14 points, was thrilled to see Fox and junior guard Nick Chudy both chip in eight points each off the bench.
“It was great. They pulled it out. I loved it,” Anderson said. “This was an awesome win.”
“If we start playing that way, we’re going to have fun,” Usher said.
Fox, who recently returned to the varsity after a stint on the JV squad, added seven rebounds.
“He gives us energy. He gives us boards and does the little thing,” Hart said of Fox. “He’s a great player.”
For all the exhilaration the Blue Streaks were feeling leaving Schenectady, Jenkins was somber talking about an opportunity missed.
“It is very disappointing,” Jenkins said. “We could have put a body on (Hart) and boxed out. They brought it more than we did.”
jallen@timesunion.com • 518-454-5062 • @TUSidelines
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