Bulldogs Take a Bite Out of Owls, 56-38

The best thing about suffering a gut-wrenching defeat in any sport is knowing that the opportunity to redeem yourself is just days away. After a fourth quarter collapse resulted in a loss to Plainedge last week, Hewlett got back in the win column with a convincing 56-38 home win over crosstown rival Lynbrook. 

Sophomore forward Weldon Irvine scored 18 points and pulled down 26 rebounds as the Bulldogs improved to 3-3 in Conference A-II, 5-4 overall. Freshman Avery Feldman added 14 points, six rebounds, and four assists for Hewlett. Freshman guard Michael McVeigh scored 12 points to lead the Owls. Lynbrook fell to 2-8, 1-4 in league play. 

Hewlett head coach Bill Dubin was happy with the play of his young guys. “We started a freshman and two sophomores tonight,” Dubin said. “We are young, and we’re just hoping to improve as the season goes along. We knew we’d take our lumps this year. Weldon is really starting to play well. The next few years are looking promising for us.” 

Neither team could get much going at the start of the game. The Bulldogs got five points from George Josiah in the opening quarter as Hewlett took a 9-5 lead after eight minutes. Irvine started to heat up in the second quarter to lead the Bulldogs to a 21-10 halftime lead. Irvine led all scorers with eight points at the break. 

The Owls came out with a little more energy in the third quarter. Junior guard Rocco Scibelli opened things up with a 3-pointer from the top of the key, and Lynbrook looked set to make a run. But, each time the Owls got close, Irvine, Feldman and company responded. Feldman scored six and Irvine added four as the Bulldogs went on an 11-3 run to take a commanding 43-29 lead. 

Lynbrook cut the lead to 47-36 on a traditional 3-point play by senior Steven Marrandino, but the Owls never got closer. Hewlett sewed things up with a 9-2 run. Lynbrook senior Kendall Bruton scored 14 points. 

Dubin is hoping the Bulldogs can carry over a little momentum as they enter the most difficult part of their schedule. Hewlett will take on Lawrence, Sewanhaka and South Side over the next two weeks. “I’m really happy that we rebounded from last game, which was horrendous,” Dubin said. “We hit the boards real well, and boxed out better than we’ve been doing. We just need to keep working hard, and make more lay ups and free throws. We have some real tough games coming up.” 

Hewlett will next take on the Golden Tornadoes on Friday at 6:15 pm. The Bulldogs won 87-79 in double overtime when the teams last met in December.