Massapequa Boys Basketball Holds off Whitman in Season Opener

The boys basketball team began the new season at home with a strong statement on Tuesday night against a perennial Suffolk County contender in . The Chiefs led the majority of the game to pull out a tough win over the Wildcats, 49-43.   

Massapequa (1-0) used a late run in the first quarter and a strong second to go into halftime with a 28-17 lead. Whitman (0-1), led by senior standout Myles Jones with 24 points, chipped away at the deficit in the second half and eventually cut it 44-40 late in the fourth quarter.  

Senior Matt Smocovich pointed out the importance of having his team make the outside shots. The guard did just that, draining a key three-pointer with a minute left to put the game out of reach.  

Junior Chris Husmann, who posted six points and eight rebounds, came up big on the offensive boards in the closing seconds to help dwindle the clock down and hand the Chiefs a season-opening win.  

Heroes:  Smocovich led Massapequa with 16 points, constantly coming up with critical shots to extend the Chiefs’ lead. Senior forward Ryan Van Buren added 10 points and 10 rebounds.  

In the losing effort, Jones poured in a game-high 24 points on 10 field goals for the Wildcats.  

Turning Point: Smocovich rattled off five straight points in the final minute of the first quarter to give the Chiefs a 13-11 lead. They remained in front for the final three quarters.  

Quotable: “We needed to make shots and we hit a couple of shots,” Massapequa head coach Marty Voigt said. “I thought we defended pretty well and were aggressive on the boards, especially with the offensive rebounding. We got a lot of second chance shots, which was good for us.”  

Bottom Line: The win in their season opener was a big statement for Massapequa. Looking ahead, the Chiefs don’t have many easy games on the schedule, starting first with this Whitman team. They will take on Lawrence next before getting into a tough conference schedule.  

“Our goal is to play harder and smarter. We have to value the ball a little more,” Voigt added. “We’ll have to prepare for a more up and down game against Lawrence.”  

Key Stat: Despite the Chiefs being a veteran squad on the bench, their senior starting five was responsible for 41 of the 49 points scored, along with a 6-1 advantage for three-pointers made. Senior Matt Young was held scoreless for the Chiefs, but dished off a game-high six assists.  

Who’s Next: Massapequa vs. Lawrence, Dec. 11, 12:30 p.m. @ Long Beach High School . 

Boys Basketball Non-Leaggue

Teams……………...1…..2…..3……4 – F

Whitman…........11….6….16…10 -- 43

Massapequa…....13…15…12…..9 -- 49  

W: Jones 24, Guardado 8, Cheema 5, Felder 4, Elmore 2 Totals: 43. M: Smocovich 0-4-16, Donahue 0-5-13, Van Buren 10-0-10, Husmann 8-0-6, Fasulo 8-0-2, Walsh 0-0-2, Young 0-6-0 Totals: 26-15-49. Three Pointers – W: Cheema 1; M: Smocovich 3, Donahue 2,  Husmann 1