BOYS BASKETBALL: Mercy brings excitement, but not a win against Southampton

BY Jake Williams |  STAFF WRITER

When Christian Lynch opened Friday night's game with a three-pointer, Bishop McGann-Mercy basketball fans knew they would have something to cheer about.

And when the Monarchs' Anthony Marone hit a driving layup to give the Monarchs a 35-34 third-quarter lead over Southampton, the fans were screaming.

Unfortunately for the Monarchs, the Mariners still had a final run left in them. For that, the Monarchs had no answer.

Southampton held on to beat the Monarchs by a 74-62 score at Bishop McGann-Mercy High School.

"We're totally outmatched in athleticism and physical [size], just everything," Monarchs Coach Mike Clauberg said. "Overall, I think my team played one of their best games of the year."

The first time these two teams met last month, Southampton (11-5, 8-4 in Suffolk County League VII) hit triple digits, winning by 101-59. But another blowout was not in the cards this time around.

McGann-Mercy (2-14, 0-12) passed the ball around the perimeter, finding little room to maneuver to get the ball inside. To counteract the Mariners' height and athletic advantages, the Monarchs tried to force the ball upcourt as much as possible. They were hardly content to go into a half-court set.

"If we had a fast break, we would take it," said Clauberg.

After seeing a one-point margin turn into a 13-point deficit within a three-minute span in the second quarter, the Monarchs took off. Lynch, Anthony Marone and Pat Stepnoski led a 12-3 run to cut the Mariners' lead to 28-24 before going into halftime down by 33-26.

Coming out of the locker room to start the third quarter, the Monarchs continued their track meet on the basketball court. In the first half, the Mariners seemed unable to keep Lynch away from the basket. He scored 14 on his way to 21 for the night. In the second half, Marone, who put up six first-half points and finished with a game-high 23, took the scoring baton and led the charge.

On a driving layup with 4 minutes 8 seconds left in the third quarter, Marone gave the Monarchs their first lead since the first quarter. But having expended so much energy coming back, the Monarchs did not have enough reserves left to motor past the Mariners.

Andrew Phillips (20 points) and D�Angelo Smith (17) helped Southampton answer with an 11-1 run and it looked as though the Mariners would head into the fourth quarter with a comfortable double-digit lead. But Marone helped fuel one last Monarch comeback bid. He closed the third quarter with a three-pointer and then took the ball the length of the court by himself to draw his team to within three at 46-43 with 6:48 left to play. But that was as close as the Monarchs would get as Smith blew past the Monarchs just as Marone had driven through the Mariners.

A three-pointer from Kyle Herman and a Lester Pettaway putback gave the Mariners a 10-point cushion and the Monarchs never got closer the rest of the way. The Mariners could breathe a sigh of relief, but not too deeply.

"I don't really think we played as well as we could have tonight," Southampton Coach Herm Lamison said. "I don't think we played a great defensive game at all. We didn't move our feet, fouling at times when we shouldn't have been fouling, and Mercy took advantage of that."

Had they still been playing League VIII opponents as they did last season before being bumped up to League VII, performances like this against League VIII teams would have brought the Monarchs comfortable victories, Clauberg said. But the adjustment to the tougher league has been a bumpy one.

"If we're in League VIII, we're a playoff team," Clauberg said. "League VII is just a different world."

jwilliams@northshoresun.com