Tioga County Sports ReportONEONTA — Owego’s season ended with a heartbreaking 57-54 overtime loss to Oneonta in the Section IV Class A boys basketball quarterfinals here Friday evening.
The River Hawks came out of the gate hot, building a 17-3 cushion. They led at quarter’s end, 19-10, with Joseph Palladino scoring 10 points, including two three-pointers.
The roles were reversed in the second period, however, as the Yellowjackets went on a 13-4 run to make it a 23-23 deadlock at halftime. Brady Car pumped out eight points and Britten Zeh nailed his third trey of the evening to highlight the rally.
Owego held a slight edge in the third quarter to grab a 34-32 lead. Zack Bensley and Jack Buchsbaum led the River Hawk effort with six and four points, respectively.
The Jackets weren’t about to be denied on their home court, surging back from a late 47-41 deficit to tie the game at 49 on Matt Rubin’s layup with less than two seconds on the clock. Zeh led the charge with seven points, including two treys, and Carr tacked on a half-dozen points to offset five by Palladino and four more from Bensley.
Fourth-seeded Oneonta, ranked 21st in the state, led throughout the overtime session with Zeh canning his sixth three-ball of the game. Matt Higgins knocked down a trey in OT and had four of Owego’s five points.
“It was a disheartening way to end a successful season,” coach Chris Evans said. “We were disappointed that we only had two officials in a sectional game.
“Having said that, we had the game won in regulation, but some missed free throws and a costly turnover allowed them to tie it at the buzzer.”
Carr led all scorers with 21 points while Zeh contributed 20.
Palladino paced Owego (13-8) with 15 points, Bensley scored 11 and Buchsbaum tacked on 10. Higgins chipped in with nine points while Carter Rieg and Hunter Slater added one basket each.
“With respect to our seniors, it’s extremely hard to let go,” Evans said. “We’ve spent, basically, the last 103 days together. These are journeys I don’t take for granted, especially in the autumn of my career. These seniors have represented OFA basketball and the Owego community with great dignity, maturity, and a kind of compassion that seems rare in these times. Selfless and serving of others, our seniors will all prove to be strong leaders — sooner rather than later. I will miss them dearly.”
The Yellowjackets (15-4), will visit top-seeded and ninth-ranked Seton Catholic (16-3) Tuesday for a semifinal.
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IN PHOTO: Joseph Palladino. ... TCSR STOCK PHOTO.
