South Side perseveres into playoffs

Taking a 15-2 record and No. 2 seed into the Nassau County Class A boys’ basketball playoffs suggests South Side’s enjoyed a smooth ride throughout the 2011-12 campaign, but that’s the furthest thing from the truth.

The Cyclones have been hit hard by injuries, with three starters going down along the way, and could be without their leading scorer and rebounder — senior forward Ryan Spadaford — for Friday’s postseason opener at home against North Shore at 6:30 p.m.

“We haven’t had our whole team together in more than a month, but we’re still playing pretty well and grinding out wins,” said South Side coach Jerry D’Angelo, who hasn’t had all five starters healthy since Jan. 10. “What’s great is the contributions we’ve gotten from players whose minutes increased,” he added.

Spadaford, who averages 19 points and 13 rebounds per game, missed nearly the entire second half of the Conference A-I schedule — four games — after suffering a high ankle sprain in practice Jan. 30. The average downtime for such an injury is three weeks, D’Angelo said, so there’s a chance Spadaford won’t be cleared to return for the start of the playoffs. “He was on crutches for almost a week and is doing the best he can to get back,” D’Angelo said. “We miss the scoring and leadership he provides.”

The Cyclones did get some good news prior to last Friday’s 53-47 loss to visiting Jericho in the regular-season finale. Senior guard Kevin Coyle, who averages 14.5 points per game and serves as the team’s biggest perimeter threat, returned after missing the previous game with a sprained ankle. “Fortunately, Kevin’s injury wasn’t as severe as Ryan’s,” D’Angelo explained. “Kevin’s our best outside shooter and everyone knows it. Defenses have to respect his range.”