This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Sports

Commack Boys Varsity Squad Gets Close Win Against Smithtown West

After a first half that saw Commack comfortably in the lead, Smithtown turned it up and made it a very interesting second half.

After having a few days off for the holiday break, it was back to business for the Commack High School Boys Varsity Basketball Team.  Commack coming into the game at 2-2 was looking to go over the .500 mark.  Smithtown West High School coming in at 0-5 was simply looking for their first win in this non-league contest.

"We're just looking to get back into the swing of things."  Commack Head Coach Pete Smith said about his team having a few days off.  "We want to keep working really hard defensively and offensively."

With the first period underway, it looked like Coach Smith and the team had worked very hard in practice.  After being down 5-2 early, Commack shook off the deficit, outscoring Smithtown West 20-8 in the first period and making their defense look lost at times. 

Find out what's happening in Commackwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

While both teams were taking fouls and Smithtown was leading in turnovers, this game was more about head-to-head-play rather than penalties.  Going into the third period Commack led by a score of 29-16, but Smithtown West was not down and out. Smithtown came out strong and looked to be the aggressors going on a 6-0 run, causing more turnovers and ending the period leading the scoring 9-4 looking well on their way to a comeback.

The start of the second half would bring an intense, nerve-wracking battle in which Commack would face its biggest tests.  Smithtown looked to learn from their mistakes in the previous three periods but Commacks defensive game was still tough as nails and their rebounding, which was one of their greatest strengths throughout the game, would continue to hold up helping the offense stay ahead.  Smithtown West did not look like an 0-5 team by any stretch and never allowed Commack to relax until the final buzzer.  Commack starters Dillion Hertel, Mark Nembhard, Nick Arnold and the rest of the squad would have to stay sharp, alert and on their toes in order to get this win and improve to 3-2 for the season.

Find out what's happening in Commackwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Commack never gave up the lead but would come close to succumbing to Smithtowns attack, leading by only two points at the end of the fourth period despite repeated Smithtown turnovers.  Commacks offense, however, kept hitting the necessary shots to keep the lead and ended the fifth period up 53-49 which sure did make for an exciting 5 minutes of sixth period basketball--Smithtown got within two points with one minute to go but couldn't tie up the game with the final score being 55-53 Commack.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?