Grafton Globe Newspaper
Winter 2020 Edition
The Grafton Boys Varsity Basketball team is ending 2018 with 2 wins and 3 losses, most recently falling to Tantasqua by a score of 48-43. Overall, they’ve been playing pretty well, but they’re looking to improve on some of their weaknesses, and finish the season strong. They have 13 games remaining in the season, and their next game won’t be until January 4th against David Prouty.
Grafton vs. Tantasqua On Friday, December 21st, Grafton hosted a tough Tantasqua team and gave them a good fight. Coming into the game, Tantasqua scored of 63 points per game on average throughout their first 4 games. They were a solid offensive team, however, Grafton didn't let them dominate on offense as Tantasqua usually does, as they played with a tenacious defense for a majority of the game. The first half was a defensive battle between both the teams, as neither Tantasqua nor Grafton were able to catch fire offensively and go on a scoring run. At the end of the first half, Grafton had tied the game until Tantasqua scored a buzzer beating layup to give them a 17-15 lead. Grafton held them to just 17 points at the half, which was the least amount of points Tantasqua had scored all year. Grafton had the momentum going into halftime, and it seemed like if they continued to play the way they did, they'd get the win. Unfortunately for Grafton, the third quarter was where everything changed. Tantasqua made a few shots early, and they caught fire to open the 3rd quarter. Grafton was unable to match their persistent scoring, and because of this, Tantasqua stole all the momentum and were in a steady rhythm. They opened the quarter on an 11-2 run, and they outscored Grafton by 10 in the third. Grafton was now facing a 12 point deficit, and their chances of winning significantly decreased. However, Grafton would not go down without a fight, as they continued to play hard, trying to claw their way back into the game. They didn't let Tantasqua runaway with the game giving Tantasqua a run for their money. Grafton made it close at the end, but they just couldn't get the job done. Despite dominating the 4th quarter by outscoring them 17-10, they couldn't make the comeback and lost by a score of 48-43. Ryan Jack led Grafton’s comeback effort as he scored a game high 20 points. Effort and Shotmaking Despite losing this game, Grafton Indians head coach Mr. Patriatas, was very pleased with Grafton’s performance and effort. When Tantasqua went on their run in the 3rd quarter, which created a significant separation between the two teams on the scoreboard, there were two explanations for this. One explanation was that Grafton’s defense got lazy and they didn't play well overall as a team, and another explanation to this is that Tantasqua just got the hot hand and their shots were just falling. When coach Patraitis was asked about the reason for Tantasqua’s 3rd quarter explosion, he did not question the team's effort or defense at all. He praised the team’s effort, as he stated: “Our effort was outstanding, they [Tantasqua] hit a couple shots and got hot a little bit in the 3rd quarter, but our effort through 4 quarters was unbelievable.” Coach Patraitis was very pleased with the team’s effort, and he was happy with the team’s performance despite the loss. He also went on to say: “If we play that hard like we did tonight, were gonna be in good shape.” The reason why Tantasqua dominated Grafton in the 3rd quarter was because they just simply had the hot hand, and Grafton didn't. They were a really good rhythm and had a lot of momentum, and Grafton just wasn’t able to match it. Coach Patraitis added that “We were getting the shots we wanted, but we were just a little cold today.” This was certainly not the case in their narrow victory at Burncoat, as Grafton was on fire in that game. They scored a season high 75 points, and also made a whopping 12 three-pointers, which was also a season high. Grafton’s effort and determination on the court has been exceptional all year long, and it’s certainly been one of their strengths. Sometimes, these games just come down to which team has the hot hand. Strengths and Weaknesses So far throughout the 5 games this season, Grafton has lost 3 of them, and the biggest reason for this is Grafton’s rebounding. This certainly showed to be a weakness against Tantasqua, as there were a few plays where Tantasqua was getting 2 or 3 shots on one possession. Coach Patraitis elaborated on this subject stating, “we’re a small team this year, so we don’t have a lot of size, so we have to work on the glass an limiting teams to one shot (per possession) only is very important.” Grafton is a team of mostly guards, so they have a disadvantage in size against most teams. Because of this, getting rebounds is harder due to their small team size. On the flip side, Grafton has a very important strength, and that would be their team chemistry and effort. This is certainly something that the Grafton Indians should be proud of, as coach Patraitis certainly is. When he was asked about the team’s biggest strength, he said, “the biggest strength is easily our team chemistry and our effort. We play hard for 4 quarters, this is a great group of kids, they get along, play hard together, work well together, that is without a doubt a strength for us.” This is certainly important for successful teams because no matter how talented individual players are, it won't mean anything if the team can't work well with each other and don’t play hard. The Indians have exceptional team chemistry, work ethic, and determination, all of which are some of the most important qualities successful teams can have. Grafton’s determination and effort showed against Tantasqua, as wherever there was a loose ball, a Grafton player was always diving for it and risking their body for the team. Coach Patriatis added on by explaining how this helped during their win at Burncoat, stating, “we really stuck together as a team and worked well to pull that victory out against a very good Burncoat team.” The Grafton Indians are heading into 2019 with a 2-3 record. 2-3 doesn't look that great on paper, but there's no doubt that Grafton is headed in the right direction. They already have great team chemistry, all they need to hit their shots on offense and work on their rebounding. Their next game will be on the road against David Prouty, who are currently winless.
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