What we learned on Day 6 of the CIAC boys basketball tournaments: Round 4 of NDWH vs. West Haven
· Yahoo Sports
NEW BRITAIN - City rivals will square off for a fourth time in the CIAC Division I boys basketball semifinals.
No. 2 seed West Haven and No. 6 seed Notre Dame-West Haven both won quarterfinal matchups Friday to get that fourth meeting. Notre Dame pulled away late from No. 3 East Catholic 60-47 and West Haven came from behind to beat Ridgefield 66-56.
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"My mindset was to come in, be locked in and just try to get that win. … We've got two more steps to reach that goal that you want, so, the mindset is just locked in," senior Abdou Toure said.
Notre Dame won all three of the previous matchups against West Haven, including the SCC tournament semifinals. But West Haven did play close at Notre Dame during the regular season.
On Friday, Toure finished with 28 points and 10 rebounds, the only player in double figures in either category for the Green Knights (22-3), the unanimous No. 1 team in the GametimeCT Top 10 poll all season long. Landon Krygier added nine points and six rebounds.
The game was played at East Catholic's pace. The Eagles used a lot of the shot clock on each possession and stayed within striking distance most of the way. They were within six (48-42) with just under 3 minutes left.
Then Notre Dame finished the game on a 12-5 run to advance. Sixth-ranked East Catholic finishes at 20-5.
"I think as a whole, we performed very, very well," said Sincere Folk, who finished with 12 points in his final game for the Eagles. "A lot of people didn't think we would get to the point that we had."
West Haven (21-4) outscored Ridgefield 20-7 in the final quarter to rally at home. Aaron Johnson Jr. led the way with 24 points while Jayson Genova led the Tigers (18-7) with 19 points.
In the other Division I semifinal, top seed and undefeated Staples will face No. 5 Notre Dame Prep, making its third straight appearance in a Division I semi. Staples is in its first Division I semi, but did get to the Division II championship game in 2023.
Coventry back in the semis
Coventry made it three straight trips to the Division V quarterfinals and now, a second appearance in a semifinal-round game.
No. 5 seed Coventry won at No. 4 Somers 59-49 in an All-NCCC matchup to advance to the semifinals for the second time in the past three seasons. Coventry will face another NCCC team, top seed Stafford, in the semis. Colin Tozier scored 31 points for Stafford to eliminate yet another NCCC club, East Granby.
Coventry started the season 10-0 before running into Ellington for its first loss and some injuries. Coventry reached the 2024 Division V championship game, but lost to Old Lyme at the Mohegan Sun Arena.
Tidbits
- With Wilby losing to SMSA, Woodland is the last remaining team in the NVL, the top seed in Division IV. Terryville, the No. 10 seed in Division V, is the only remaining Berkshire League team.
- Both Bunnell (Division II) and Stratford (III) are still alive. The Red Devils came from behind to beat Grasso Tech 75-62, led by Nico Lubas, who scored 23 points. Stratford scored 26 points in the fourth quarter.
- North Haven defeated Bethel 72-69 at home in Division III. The second-seeded Nighthawks are one step away from reaching their second-ever state final, but SMSA, the No. 3 seed, stands in the way.
This article originally published at What we learned on Day 6 of the CIAC boys basketball tournaments: Round 4 of NDWH vs. West Haven.