Kennedy Upset Hopes Die at Buzzer

When trying to knock off your conference leader, you're going to have to bring your 'A' game.

Give Bellmore JFK an 'A-'.

Joey Karo missed a potential game-tying three as time expired, allowing first place Plainview JFK to escape with a 55-52 win on Monday.  The loss dropped the visiting Cougars to 3-2 in league play.  Plainview remains unbeaten.

Brendan Mills led Kennedy with 16 points, and Andrew Kruter chipped in with 10. 

However, there was little doubt the game would be placed in Karo's hands, not after hitting from beyond the arc four times on the afternoon.  His miss capped off the wild final minute of play of a spirited contest, played before a vocal Plainview crowd.

With the Hawks up five, they played an old fashioned game of keep away while  the Cougars tried desperately to foul, as valuable seconds ticked off the clock.

Kennedy finally got what they wanted with 32 seconds remaining: a foul, a missed free throw, and a timeout.  Then came the near-coaching move of the day.

Cougars coach Rory Block summoned Mike Teich off the bench, who immediately drained a three, pulling Kennedy to within two, firing up the team's sideline.

After a pair of free throws by Plainview's Corey Maiorana put his team up by four, Kennedy came right back down the floor, and an Adrian Rose putback made it 54-52 with 12 seconds left.

After another foul, the Hawks' Jordan Lefkowitz only hit 1 of 2 from the line, setting up Karo's chance to send things to overtime, but his straightaway three was off the mark, and the clock finally ran out on the Cougars.

"He got a good look, he didn't make it but he's our best player so if we want someone taking that last second shot, it's Joey," Cougars assistant coach Steve Drury said.

While the game was officially lost on Karo's miss, the true loss may have been at the free throw line.  The physical contest saw Plainview head to the line early and often - and often more successful than Kennedy.

"The foul shots were really killers," Drury said.  "They shot close to 30 foul shots and hit a good percentage of them, that's where they beat us."

The Cougars were also beat by the all around game of Plainview's Zach Amateau.  The junior scored a game high 23, including four 3's, the last of which gave Plainview their late, five point margin.

"He does everything for us," Plainview coach Mike Harris said.  "Sometimes he takes one or two bad shots, but I'll live with it.  He's our go-to guy."

The Cougars' go-to guy on the inside was Mills, and his basket kicked off a 16-2 run to open the second half.  The center's presence in the paint opened things up from the outside, with Kennedy nailing half of their eight 3's on the day during the run.

Amateau ended the run with a three of his own, and the momentum quickly shifted back toward the Hawks for the quarter, and ultimately for the game, right up until Caro's chance at the end.

The Cougars realize what they must do if they hope to upset second place Syosset as league play continues on Wednesday. 

"We've definitely got to improve on our foul shots," Drury said.  "Just play hard...if we hit all our foul shots like we should, we would've won the game."

Perhaps then we can give Kennedy that 'A'.

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