Spirited Wantagh upsets Hewlett

Sean Gutfleisch’s layup off a feed from Connor L’Eplattenier broke a deadlock with 1:51 remaining and propelled Wantagh to a 47-44 upset victory over visiting Hewlett in a Conference A-II boys’ basketball game on Jan. 20.

The Warriors, who trailed by 11 in the first quarter and by six with 45 seconds remaining in the third, outscored the Bulldogs 17-8 over the final nine minutes to win their second straight following a six-game skid. Senior Will O’Brien scored a team-high 11 points, while senior Mark Buchner added seven points and had a key steal in the final seconds to preserve the victory.

“It was a total team effort,” Wantagh head coach Keith Hunter said. “We’re gritty and need contributions from a lot of kids like we had tonight. [Anthony] Teresky and [Mike] Durham were phenomenal off the bench and made it tough to take them out.”

Hewlett, which won the first meeting 61-50 on Dec. 18 after building a 24-point lead in the first half, got a game-high 21 points from senior Troy Feeney in the rematch. The Bulldogs, who were without their leading scorer, sophomore Elyjah Hill (16.6 ppg), struggled from the foul line (8-for-18) and behind the arc (4-for-18.)

“It’s no secret free throws have been a problem for us over the last five years,” Hewlett head coach Bill Dubin said. “We saw it again tonight. We also didn’t get the ball inside or work hard enough for easier shots. We took way too many threes.”

Feeney sank a pair of early treys and had 10 points in the opening six minutes to help the Bulldogs (5-4 in Conference A-II, 6-7 overall) race to an 18-7 lead. But Wantagh (3-6 in A-II, 4-9 overall) responded after a timeout by Hunter and ripped off the last 10 points of the quarter, four by O’Brien and three apiece from Durham and Buchner, to make it 18-17.

“We could’ve packed it in early, but these kids work so hard and believe they can win,” Hunter said. “We don’t have any superstars and we’re playing six or seven juniors. We’ve come a long way from where we were at 1-6 to start the season.”

Gutfleisch gave the Warriors their first lead early in the second quarter with a basket that capped a 12-point run, but they managed just one more field goal over the next five minutes against Hewlett’s zone defense led by bigs Zach Bromfeld and Aaron Kadosh. The Bulldogs moved ahead by five and led 27-24 at halftime after Teresky knocked down a trey.

Teresky also dialed long distance to close the third quarter to get Wantagh within 36-33. L’Eplattenier opened the fourth with back-to-back baskets to regain the lead, and Durham’s clutch trey answered Feeney’s bucket and the Warriors never trailed again.

It was the team’s second consecutive win. Buchner (16 points) and TJ Sullivan (14) led a rout of Division on Jan. 15. “Our goal is to have a winning record over the second half of the season,” Hunter explained. “We’ve lost some close ones. Our record doesn’t reflect how we’ve played.”