Mepham makes early statement

With five senior starters and several upperclassmen leading the way off the bench, Mepham has its sights set on the Nassau Class AA boys’ basketball playoffs and sent a message to the rest of Conference AA-III before the holiday break with a gutsy 60-57 win over visiting Westbury.

The Pirates, who trailed by seven points late in the first quarter, had three players — Kyle Wechsler (21), J.T. Elsasser (12) and Kris Waldron (10) — score in double figures as they evened their conference mark and improved to 4-1 overall. Marc Laurent poured in a game-high 26 points for the Green Dragons.

“It’s a big win,” said Elsasser, who had a key steal with 1:36 remaining that led to a three-point play by Wechsler that put Mepham ahead by seven. “After losing to Long Beach last game we didn’t want to start 0-2 in the conference,” he added.

With a two-week gap between games, Mepham coach Rich Wojcieski said the outcome was pivotal for many reasons. “It’s not like this game meant we’re in or out of the playoffs, but it’s a momentum builder and nobody wants to spend so many days thinking about a loss,” he said. “Hopefully we’ll come out of the break and pick up where we left off.”

Led by Laurent and Jordan Sands (17 points), Westbury shot the lights out early going 9-for-12 from the field, including a pair of threes, and held its biggest lead — 20-13 — before Wechsler capped the first quarter by sinking two free throws with seconds remaining.

Wechsler, who averaged 21 points in three non-league wins and hit for 35 against Calhoun, was fouled hard after opening the second quarter with a quick bucket and laid on the court for several minutes before being replaced by Cameron Brennick. A junior, Brennick swished a free throw to complete the three-point play and later answered a three-pointer by Laurent with a smooth 12-foot jumper to tie the game at 23.

“When Kyle went down, I thought that was a key stretch because Cam came in and we didn’t skip a beat,” Wojcieski said. “Everyone held their breath for a while. Last year that was something that would’ve gotten us down, but instead we made a run.”

Wechsler returned midway through the quarter after the Pirates scored eight straight points to lead 31-26, and he ignited the offense after a slow start to the second half caused the advantage to evaporate. Wechsler had seven points in a third quarter that featured four lead changes, the last of which came when Dan Kaminsky dialed long distance and gave the hosts a 47-45 edge.

Mepham led by as many as 10 points in the fourth quarter but the margin was only 55-53 when Waldron converted a huge put-back with less than two minutes to go to make it a two-possession game.

“Most of us have played together for four years and we have good chemistry,” Elsasser said. “Our ultimate goal is to make the playoffs.”