Boys Basketball: Indians pierced by Pierson

There was a simple reason why the Indians lost to Pierson last week, according to varsity Coach Mike Mundy: “We were out-hustled. That’s all I have to say.”

Multiple turnovers hurt the Indians early on, and Pierson jumped out to an early lead by the end of the first quarter, 20-11.

Jimmy Read, who led the team with 12 points, got the Indians spectators excited in the second quarter when he slapped a Pierson shot attempt into the gymnasium wall. The Indians didn’t get into a scoring groove until there were just 4 minutes left, when Read drilled a 3-pointer. Chris Napolitano, who scored 7 points for the Indians, forced his way under the net to go for a layup. He missed, but grabbed his own rebound and sank the shot. The Indians were able to get 10 points on the board in the second quarter.

Pierson was on a roll, though, dominating the Indians on the backboards throughout the match and creating plenty of opportunities to run up the score. They led 37-21 at halftime.

Things didn’t improve for the Indians in the second half. A poor free throw percentage plagued Shelter Island, who went 6 for 18 at the free throw line. Pierson had just 3 free throw attempts but made all of them.

The turnovers and difficulty getting rebounds continued, and despite timeout calls from Coach Mundy, who hoped to slow the Whalers’ momentum, it was too late for the Indians to turn the game around. By the final buzzer the score was 67-37, Pierson.

It’s been a tough season so far for the varsity Indians, whose only win was their season opener at McGann-Mercy on December 11.

The boys lost 69-29 at Port Jefferson on January 18. Their next game is at Ross tomorrow at 6:15 p.m.