The St. Paul boys basketball team is a young group with no seniors.
The Falcons have a whole bunch of potential, but there’s also inexperience that has to be worked through. That has been on display in each of the last two home games inside the friendly confines of the Rev. Brian Monnerat Gymnasium.
On Jan. 6, St. Paul trailed Torrington by 18 points with 4:41 left in the fourth quarter, but stormed back to within a point before falling, 64-60.
On Monday night against WCA, the Falcons trailed the Spartans by 22 points in the third quarter and were still down 18 early in the fourth quarter. St. Paul again fought back, twice cutting its deficit to three points in the final 2:33 of the game. The Falcons even had the ball, down by four points with 57.1 seconds to play, but the Spartans finished off a 71-64 win.
Say this about these Falcons … They. Do. Not. Quit. St. Paul head coach Steve Phelps uses every second of every timeout to instruct his players and get the most out of them.
Junior Sean McMahon had 24 points in the Torrington game, and he put up another 26 against WCA. McMahon’s outside shots weren’t falling, but he repeatedly attacked the basket and scored. Sophomore big Coby Dagata had 13 points against WCA while fellow sophomore Amir Sumler added 10 points, including a three-point play that got St. Paul to within 64-61 with 2:33 to go. McMahon scored off an inbound pass at the 1:45 mark to again get the Falcons with three points, 66-63.
St. Paul struggled mightily against WCA’s full-court pressure in the second quarter, and that helped the visitors build a 17-point lead. Sophomore Lamar Frazier’s putback at the buzzer sent the Falcons to the locker room trailing, 37-22.
After falling behind by as much as 22 points (46-24) in the third quarter, St. Paul began clawing its way back into the game. Dagata scored on the second of two straight opportunities, McMahon tallied five straight points to get the deficit down to 46-31. That prompted a timeout from WCA head coach Ronan O’Leary. A pull-up by Jeremiah Williams (game-high 27 points) in the final seconds gave the Spartans a 53-39 lead entering the fourth quarter.
WCA built its advantage to 18 points, 59-41, when junior Alex Turner banked in a 3-pointer early in the fourth quarter. That’s when St. Paul began its big push. McMahon sank a pair of foul shots and Dagata converted a three-point play. After McMahon went all the way for a layup, O’Leary called time with a 59-48 lead and 6:14 left to play.
Senior Zyair Moreno hit a 3-pointer for a 62-48 WCA advantage, but St. Paul tallied the next 10 points. Sophomore Nick Leggett drove for a layup, then McMahon scored the next three points. Dagata fired in a line-drive shot from the left side of the foul line. That forced a Spartan timeout at the 4:13 mark and the score at 62-55. The Falcons turned it over on their next possession, but McMahon’s steal and layup brought the deficit down to 62-57. A McMahon free throw made it 62-58 with 3:11 to go.
After giving up a basket, St. Paul sliced its deficit in half, 64-61, on Sumler’s driving three-point play. It was a three-point game again, 66-63, on a McMahon layup.
The Falcons committed a costly mistake when they fouled Williams on a three-point attempt in front of his own bench. Williams made two of three free throws for a 68-63 Spartan lead at the 1:18 mark.
McMahon got a point back at the line, 68-64, with 1:10 to go, then St. Paul forced a turnover with 57.1 seconds left. The Falcons missed a three-point attempt, and Williams got free for a fast-break layup that put the game away.
St. Paul may be 5-4, but the seven-point margin of defeat against WCA was its largest of the season. The Falcons have been in every game, and that experience should only make them better as the season moves along.
GALLERY: Here are my photos from Monday’s game.
