East Hampton Shakes Off Stubborn Portland

Judging by the score, one might think that East Hampton’s 59-42 victory at Portland on Saturday afternoon was easy. It wasn’t.

The Bellringers came into the Shoreline Conference game against the winless Highlanders in search of their third victory in four games, and in the first five minutes, everything was going according to plan.

A three-pointer by Marvin Gorgas capped a 13-0 run for a 14-2 lead. East Hampton was getting contributions on offense from all five starters and its trapping defense was causing fits for Portland.

Everything changed after a timeout by the Highlanders with 3:02 left in the quarter. Jack Kelley scored six of his eight first-quarter points and Brady Marconi followed a three with two free throws to cut the deficit to 17-13.

East Hampton (3-4) took an 18-13 lead into the second quarter and added to it on Kyle Adams’ basket off an inbounds play. Gorgas then scored on a drive to the hoop off a turnover for a 22-13 lead.

Portland (0-8) wasn’t done, however.

East Hampton’s trap had lost its effectiveness and the Highlanders made the Bellringers pay from the perimeter. A three by Matt Ryan made the score 22-16. Then TJ Salvatore nailed a long two and followed that with a three to get Portland within 23-22. When Salvatore scored a basket on a putback for a 23-22 lead he had the Highlanders faithful believing that this just might be their day.

Jeff Pratt converted on a nice length-of-the-court drive to give East Hampton the lead back and when Matt Vasquenza hit two free throws in the final seconds of the half, East Hampton escaped into the locker room with a 28-25 lead.

“We were a little slow with some of our [defensive] rotations,” East Hampton coach Parker Strong said. “It’s a little frustrating. [Portland] got good looks and they were able to knock them down. [Jack Kelley] hit his shots, he’s got range, too. Our defense was lackadaisical. We didn’t rotate well. A couple of times we had a turnover that led to points for them. We corrected it in the second half."

Gorgas began the second half with a steal and a layup for a 30-25 lead, but Portland was hanging around. Jose Rivera’s runner in the lane drew the Highlanders within 33-31. Vasquenza then hit his second three of the third quarter and Adams followed that with a basket off a nice assist from Heroux. Fouled on the play, Adams converted the free throw for a 39-31 lead, then made it a 10-point advantage with a basket off an entry pass from Spencer Daly.

Portland coach Nate Turner attributed some of Portland’s second-half troubles to turnovers. Unofficially, the Highlanders had 19 for the game.

“Turnovers. Turnovers have been a problem all year,” Turner said. “We came out in the third quarter and turned it over in four out of the first five possessions. Playing hard, just not smart.”

East Hampton had settled into a strong man-to-man defense, and with Adams and Pratt dominating underneath, Portland had difficulty getting the ball inside and was forced into more perimeter shooting than it probably would have liked.

“We played more man-to-man,” Strong said. “The trap was hurting us for a while so we got out of it. Our man was doing good when we were organized, so we thought we could stick to our man and we’d be all right.”

Just as bad for Portland, its fouls had piled up and East Hampton was in the bonus entering the fourth quarter. East Hampton took a 43-33 lead into the fourth and from there slowly pulled away. The Bellringers went to the free-throw line 19 times in the second half, making 10. For the game they were 17 of 32 compared with 5 of 7 for Portland.

The disparity in fouls and free throws was not lost on Turner.

“I’m not one to blame the officials, but we’re busting our butts out there,” Turner said. “We’re out there in the same trenches. You can’t tell me that you’re going for 16 minutes and you only have four fouls and you’re playing man-to-man, that’s not possible in this league. Our league is too tough and everyone is very aggressive. So, I thought a few got away. We were playing just as aggressive as they were. … The kids battle and you hate to see the officials take that away from them because it was a good game. To our credit, I think our kids battled all the way through. I thought they played hard for 32 minutes.

“Not to take nothing away from [East Hampton], those guys played their game. They stuck to their game plan and it worked for them. I’m not taking nothing away from their win. They earned it. They’re improving and they’re looking better and better as well.”

The strong play of Gorgas offensively and defensively was huge for East Hampton as it continues to flirt with its potential while searching for consistent contributions on both ends of the court.

“With Marvin it starts with defense. He got a couple of steals, layups,” Strong said. “He’s able to go to the hole. He does a nice job finishing with his left hand. Any day it could be somebody different for us. We don’t depend on one kid to score 30 points. Marvin was able to make plays when he had the opportunity. They doubled on Kyle quite a bit on the inside, we kick out to Marvin, he’s finding the lane and going to the hole. He did a great job for us.”

Adams led East Hampton with a season-high 16 points. Gorgas and Vasquenza had 15 each and Nate Heroux added eight. For Gorgas, his total also was a season high.

“In order for us to beat some of the better teams in the league, we have to play 32 minutes. We didn’t play 32 minutes today,” Strong said. “We still have a long way to go. Right now all we’re focused on is Old Saybrook.”

East Hampton will host the Rams on Monday night at 7:30 p.m. in a rematch of the Liberty Bank Holiday Tournament championship game on Dec. 29 won by the Bellringers, 46-41.

The Highlanders were led in scoring by Kelley, who finished with 14. Salvatore had seven and Ryan six to help Portland to a season-high 41 points.

Portland will travel to New Haven to play Hyde on Monday, the first of three consecutive games on the road.

Despite the loss, Turner likes the improvement he has been seeing in his team.

“The kids are busting their butts every single day,” he said. “They’re getting better and better. It’s eliminating the little mistakes. It’s the little things that become big things. One turnover on the offensive end and lack of communication on the defensive end, that’s a four-point swing and it’s tough to climb back when you’re playing against tough teams. Our league is by far the best in the state for Class S. There’s no room for error with anybody, whoever you’re playing. Once we eliminate some of our mistakes, I think we’ll see more positive results.”