The Cranston West boys basketball team had a senior night to remember last Friday night, erasing a 13-point deficit to come back and beat rival Cranston East 46-43 to remain in the Division II playoff race.
The Bolts dominated early, quickly mounting a 13-0 lead, fueled by Alex Fernandez whose sharp-shooting continued as he hit a pair of 3’s in the opening quarter.
The Falcons buckled down from there, though, and chipped away at the East advantage. West would finally get its first lead deep in the fourth quarter when Nate Conca hit a 3-pointer which would be enough as the Falcons held on from there. Conca led the team in scoring and shot four 3-pointers in the second half alone.
“We had to come together in the second half and play with heart. Once we started playing with heart, we began to play with our skills. We knew we had to climb up, climb up. When you’re losing, you need to have the mindset that you have to win,” said Conca. “The plays that we were running worked. Screens, running out to the 3. My team really helped me get open.”
Junior forward Noah Germain was also key in the comeback, producing on both ends of the floor in the paint and shutting down the Bolts’ offense in the final three quarters.
“It wasn’t game over, it was just the first quarter. We just had to keep playing and moving forward. It was magnificent, the crowd was packed, I haven’t played in a game like this ever. It’s a blessing. It took heart. We were looking real low, but we pulled it together and got the win. It was a big morale boost for us,” said Germain. “I tried my best and got to the paint. When I saw the basketball, when I saw (an opening), I took it.”
It was the second meeting and second win over East for the Falcons this season. Conca has been enjoying a breakout season as a freshman for West and was thrilled to get the season sweep in a playoff atmosphere.
“It’s amazing, I love to play basketball, it’s my favorite thing and I do it every day and I train hard. It’s always a big competition between us two and I love that we got the clean sweep,” said Conca. “This will give us momentum. We’ve beat two Division I teams in a row and we’re going to make it (to the playoffs) together.”