In Saratoga’s first sectional home game in seven years, they made sure it was a memorable one, knocking off 13-seeded Niskayuna on Tuesday night by a final score of 75-48.
Saratoga jumped out to a big lead early behind a huge scoring burst in the first quarter, ending up with a 12-point lead at the end of one and capping it off with a three from AJ Lawton at the buzzer. This would give the Blue Streaks a big advantage in having the lead early in a playoff game.
In addition to this, a full-court pressure defense for most of the first half made it difficult for Niskayuna to get the ball in the net with Saratoga forcing turnovers along the way.
“We talked about trying to come out with some energy, and we wanted to speed them up a little bit and press, so I thought our pressure helped get us started,” Saratoga head coach Matt Usher said.
That combination allowed for Saratoga to grab a huge 41-21 lead heading into the locker rooms at halftime.
In the early minutes of the second half, it seemed as if Saratoga couldn’t miss, scoring in bunches. That burst was led by Adam Anderson, who had 11 points in the third quarter alone and 27 points overall.
“It was the last home game of my high school career, so I wanted to come out with a win,” Anderson said. “It’s great when we start hitting shots.”
At the end of three quarters, Saratoga had a nearly insurmountable lead, 59-37 heading into the last eight minutes of play, letting Saratoga play conservatively in the fourth to get the victory.
In support of Anderson’s 27 on the night, AJ Lawton had 13 points, and Brian Hart added 10. Niskayuna was led by Alex Ritzenhaler who had 16, followed by Jack Evans and Justin Wise who had nine and eight points, respectively.
Saratoga is now up to a seven-game win streak following a mid-season funk when they lost to Averill Park and Guilderland, peaking at exactly the right time in late February.
“If we can get through the first round or two, I think we’ll be up for the challenge,” Usher said. “If we play well I think we can beat anybody, so hopefully we can bring the A-game.”
Niskayuna’s season is over following the loss.
With the win, Saratoga advances to the Class AA quarterfinals, taking on 5-seeded Schenectady, who beat CBA on Tuesday night. They will play Schenectady on Saturday afternoon at Hudson Valley Community College. Tip-off is at 2 PM.
