Great seasons end for two Section V basketball teams in regional round
The loss Rush-Henrietta suffered in regionals Friday night at Gates Chili was a somber ending for stars like Avery Council and Jalen Taggart.
Coach Calvin Betts reinvigorated a program he once led to a Section V championship as a player, when he was a rare four-time All-Greater Rochester first teamer who won AGR Player of the Year as a sophomore, guiding Rush-Henrietta (20-3) to its first section title since 2011 before an abrupt halt to Section VI power Jamestown (20-3) in the New York State Public High School Athletic Association Class AAA Far West Regional final Friday night at Gates Chili.
Council and Taggart put the team on their back, again, but Rush-Henrietta was unable to join Section V's four other region champions who'll advance to this weekend's NYSPHSAA semifinals in Binghamton.Class D's Fillmore was the only other local team to lose its regional. Class AA's Greece Athena, back-to-back Class A region champion Wayne, Class B's World of Inquiry and Class C's Honeoye all had impressive outings at Section V went 4-2 against Section VI's Buffalo area champs Friday and Saturday.
"I'm extremly proud of my guys. Extremely proud of the season they had. They gave it everything they had. First sectional championship in 14 years at Rush-Henrietta. I've got some guys coming back. What I take from this is I hope they feel it.
"I've got to learn. There's a lot more things I think I could have probably done better myself. But I want all of us to feel this and make sure we don't feel this way again."
Jamestown (Section VI) 69, Rush-Henrietta 64
Coach Calvin Betts' Royal Comets were ranked No. 1 on the Section V Large School Poll all season and may have been the best team in the area, but Rush-Henrietta met its match — twice — to a Jamestown program clinching its third final four in four seasons, and fifth since 2011. The Raiders' wire-to-wire victory was convincing, although juniors Avery Council (27 points) and Jalen Taggart (23 points, six 3-pointers) kept the Comets close, but rarely got within two possessions.
Jamestown's Jaydian Johnson converted highly contested shots on his way to a game-high 29 points, but Dominic Gonzalez made the play of the game, stealing the ball and throwing up a one-handed 3-point runner at the buzzer for a 38-27 halftime lead. On Feb. 14, Jamestown defeated visiting Rush-Henrietta 71-51 without the Comets' 6-foot-7 center Amir Bradford.
They said it
Rush-Henrietta coach Calvin Betts: "They shot extremely well tonight. Take my hat off to Jamestown. They played a hell of a game. ... I can't say nothing bad about our guys. They've had a hell of a season."
Jamestown coach William Miley: "At this point in the game, everybody's good. Everybody can play. And you've got to be able to take advantage of the opportunities when it happens. Everyone is going to make a run. They're not going to back down (or) fold. And (Rush-Henrietta) certainly didn't. They played their butts off until the end. ... Every time they made their run (we) responded back with a positive play and hold them off."
Key returners for Rush-Henrietta
Jalen Taggart, Avery Council, Talhah Ali, Jerome Ward IV.
Panama (Section VI) 86, Fillmore 69
This high-scoring outing saw both teams combine for 18 made 3-pointers in the first half. Panama led 47-44 at halftime before outscoring Fillmore 39-25 in the second half. In the loss, the Eagles (20-4) were again led by sophomores Cam Mucher (26 points, three 3-pointers) and Jonah Bialek (17 points). Junior Jameson Rhett scored all 12 of points on 3s.
With Fillmore's JD Bialek as the only senior who'll graduate.
They said it
Fillmore coach Randy Crouch: "I'm proud of the fact those guys were disappointed in the locker room. We've been talking since Day One, the goal was to get to Binghamton. ... I don't think there's any shame. Panama was tough. We're the second Fillmore team to make it to regionals and fifth to win sectionals. Time passes I'll remind the, of that, but the exciting thing for me was we weren't in the locker room 10 minutes before somebody said, 'When's the next time we're getting together?'"
Key returners for Fillmore
Jonah Bialek, Cam Mucher, Isaiah Sisson, Jameson Rhett, Jordan Bialek.
— Marquel Slaughter is a journalist for the Democrat and Chronicle, specializing in high school sports and Syracuse University athletics. He's won numerous Associated Press and NYNPA awards for his work in print and broadcasting throughout his 15-year career as a reporter. Follow him @MarquelSports and X and Instagram. You can email him at mslaughter1@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Rush-Henrietta, Fillmore end seasons just short of NYS final four
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