Avon, Canton boys win openers; Canton girls dominate SMSA

GRANBY, Dec. 20 – Justin Reichler had 12 points while Patrick McKearney added 11 as Avon outlasted Granby, 40-34 in the season opening contest for the Falcons. Avon (1-0, 1-0 NCCC) held the defending Class S champion Bears to just nine points in the first half. The Bears played pretty good defense, too. Avon had just 14 points after two quarters. 

It was Avon’s fourth win on opening night in five years. The Falcons get back to work quickly. They face Northampton, Mass., (2-0) Saturday afternoon at Western New England University in Springfield as part of the Hall of Fame Classic tournament. 

Avon 40, Granby 34
At Granby
AVON (40): John Burdick 2-2-6, Brad Fisher 2-1-5, Sean Herrmann 1-1-3, Pat McKearney 3-5-11, Jake Sartain 0-3-3, Justin Rechler 5-2-12. Totals 13-14-40.
GRANBY (34): R.J. Mooney 2-0-4, Logan Brower 3-0-8, Tanner Gibson 5-3-14, David Eke 4-0-8, Zach Quinn 0-0-0, Curt Field 0-0-0. Totals 14-3-34.
Avon (1-0)            8  6    7  19 – 40
Granby (0-2)        2  7  14  11 — 34
Three-point goals: Brower (G) 2, Gibson (G) 

Canton 61, SMSA 58
HARTFORD, Dec. 20 – Cam Daley and Andrew Zukowski each had 21 points and the Warriors surged in the fourth quarter to beat Sport Medical Science Academy Friday night, 61-58 in the opening game of the season. Canton (1-0) erased a five-point deficit after three quarters to earn the win. Zukowski’s 21 points was a career-high while Daley was only two points shy of his career-high of 23 points in a single game. 

Canton won on opening night for the eighth time in 10 years. Canton is now 44-48 on opening day, dating back to its first varsity season in 1920-21. For Canton, It was the first time facing SMSA in the season opening contest. 

Canton 61, SMSA 58
At Hartford
Canton (61) Rieley Hoffman 1-5-7, Alex Daley 0-0-0, Andrew Zukowski 7-6-21, Jake Wood 1-1-3, Cam Daley 6-9-21, Cameron Lange 2-2-6, Shane Toland 1-1-3. Totals 18 24 61.
SMSA (0-2): Kevin Ramos 3-0-6, Dwatne Bernard 7-6-21, Ja’Kwon Mitchell 3-1-7, Marvin Woodward 3-0-7, Milan Lester 3-4-12, Jon Mikal Riley 2-1-5. Totals 21 12 58.
Canton (1-0)          16  17  10  18 – 61
SMSA (0-2)            11  19  18  10 – 58
Three-point goals: Zukowski (C), Bernard (S), Woodward (S), Lester (S) 2 

GIRLS BASKETBALL
Canton 67, SMSA 20
CANTON, Dec. 20 – Gabby Rose had a game-high 16 points while Maggie Treacy chipped in with 13 to lead Canton past Sport Medical Science Academy, 67-20. Freshman Emily Briggs scored 12 points for the Warriors (2-1). The game was close early. The Warriors led by two, 10-8, with about two minutes left in the first quarter. But Canton went on a 19-0 run over the next six minutes to take command of the contest. 

Canton 67, SMSA 20
At Canton
SMSA (20): J. Gonzalez 0 1-2 1, A. Mosdale 0 1-9 1, M. Vela 1 1-2 4, J. Riley 2 5-6 9, S. Barr 1 1-2 3, B. Antavalle 1 0-0 2. Totals 5 9-21 20
Canton (67): Erin Detorie 3 0-0 9, Lindsay Sugar 2 2-2 7, Katie Walker 0 2-2 2, Emily Briggs 5 2-6 12, Jacquie Grabowski 2 0-0 4, Alex Martin  1 2-2 4, Maggie Treacy 3 5-6 13, Gabby Rose 8 0-0 16, Natalie Grisevich 0-0-0, Emma Charron 0-0-0, Amanda Gottlieb 0-0-0. Totals 24 13-18 67
Canton (2-1)     15  20  18  14 — 67
SMSA (0-3)         8    5    5    2 — 20
Three-point goals: Detorie (C) 3, Sugar (C), Treacy (C) 2