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STAMFORD, Conn. The seniors on Westhills boys basketball team remembered the three losses to city rival Stamford High last year. Better yet, they did something about it.
The Vikings beat Stamford in every phase of the game Tuesday night to post an impressive 86-65 win over their archrivals at Westhill. From start to finish, Westhill played as if it had a chip on its shoulder. And it did.
They had some kids over to the school today saying stuff about how Stamford would beat us, said senior Chris Walters, who led the Vikings with 26 points. We wanted to come out and prove were the best team in Stamford.
The Vikings (7-4, 6-3) made a believer of Stamford coach Jim Moriarty, whose team denied Westhill a berth in the Fairfield County Interscholastic Athletic Conference championship game with a victory in last years tournament semifinals. We knew they were a tough matchup for us, Moriarty said. No matter what we did, it was their night.
Tony Dobbinson and Yves Cassamajor added 14 for the winners, while Sam Dorrisant had 13. Bryan Boderick scored 17, and Rawayne Sy had 13 for Stamford (5-6, 4-5).
Walters and Dobbinson keyed a second half surge that saw the Vikings take control for good. Stamford trailed 24-17 after the first quarter and was within 28-20 early in the second quarter. Walters scored on a slam in transition to make it 30-20 and ignite a 9-2 run. Westhill stretched the margin to 45-27 at halftime, with Dobbinson hitting two three-pointers in the second quarter. Walters had 15 points at halftime, and the Vikings had nailed seven three-pointers. Westhill coasted from there, building the lead to 26 points on several occasions.
They played right into our hands, Walters said. They tried to play a quick game with us, and thats what we like to do.
Westhill learned that lesson last year when Stamford slowed the pace in the three meetings. With Dorrisant and Mark Edwin (10 points) controlling the backboards, Westhill got into a transition game. With Dobbinson pushing the pace, Westhill repeatedly beat the Black Knights down the floor.
Last year they got us to play their game, Westhill coach Howard White said. What we talked about all week was pushing the ball. If we let them set up on defense, it will dictate the flow.
Westhill has won three straight and four of its last five. It faces a tough stretch over the next few weeks against playoff contenders. The loss was a tough blow for a Stamford team that had won three straight and is facing its own difficult road.
We keep getting better, but were not at our best yet, Walters said. We have to keep working, and keep improving, especially on defense. There are some things we can improve."
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