February
5, 2007
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MAHWAH -- Dan Avento is the kind of basketball player who seems to blend in. He’s not the big scorer, not the huge rebounder. He’s simply a hard-nosed player who works in the shadows of others, but is invaluable in the team concept.
He made his presence felt on Sunday in the quarterfinal round of the Jamboree, stepping into the spotlight with 15 points and 5 rebounds in a 53-48 Cowboy win that sends them to the semifinals for the first time since 1995, when they lost to Hackensack.
Pascack Hills (17-1) was coming off of its first loss of the season to Northern Highlands on Thursday, and it remained to be seen how it would react.
Head coach Chris Kirkby found out soon enough.
“As coaches, we talked (after the loss) and we said, we’ll see how well we’re going to do today based on how we came to practice (Saturday),” Kirkby related. “They came ready to work, they listened and it was never a case of working hard.’
They out-worked the Highwaymen (15-6), and Avento was a main cause. He joined with Evan Lampert (10 rebounds), Josh Feit (7) and Matt Marini (7) to lead the ‘Boys to a 35-14 margin on the glass.
“He played so hard,” Kirkby said of Avento. “He didn’t come off the court in the second half, he played (Kaihrique) Irick man to man, and he scores 15 points. He bangs around in there, and he’s a coach’s dream.”
Rob Sobels’s two first quarter three-point field goals helped loosen the inside a bit, and Lampert seized the chance to can seven points as Pascack Hills went out to a 19-14 lead after the first period.
Teaneck made three runs at the Cowboys, one in the second period when it got within 24-22, only to see Hills score the final six points of the half to go off with a 30-22 advantage. Avento started it with a layup and Marini ended it with a putback basket.
The second time the Highwaymen got it down to a 39-37 deficit, but the Cowboys again put up a six-spot, with Avento finishing the spurt with another driving layup.
The fourth quarter saw Teaneck get the game tied at 48 with 3:22 left on a three-pointer by Chris Diaz, but the ‘Boys did not allow a point the rest of the way.
“It was a team defense,” Avento said. “We played man and then we went to a zone to control their guards. We gave a step to everyone, because they are quicker than us, and we got a hand up on No. 5 (Diaz) and doubled Irick down low so he couldn’t catch and face up.”
Pascack Hills regained the lead at 2:32 on one of two at the line by Lampert, and a Jake Wolfin steal sent Sobel in for a layup to make it 51-48 with 2:07 to go. A Lampert basket off an offensive rebound pushed the margin to five and Avento appropriately finished the scoring with a layup in the final seconds.
Teaneck struggled from the field after the first quarter, hitting only 13 of 39 shots in the last three periods to end up 19 of 53. Diaz had 15 points and was 4 of 8 on threes, but he was kept in check in the second half, with Steven Shorr coming off the bench to take him on defensively.
“He’s had a lot of big assignments over the last three years,” Kirkby said of Shorr. “We know we can put him in the game at any time and he knows exactly what to do. We were in a zone, but we were focused on certain players.”
The Highwaymen were 5 of 9 at the free throw line, and Irick was not a factor, with 12 points and 4 rebounds.
Pascack Hills hit 22 of 40 field goals and 9 of 18 free throws, with Lampert topping the scoring chart with 17 points. Sobel added 12, while Wolfin had six assists.
The Cowboys will draw their second straight NNJIL opponent in next weeks’ 7:45 tip-off at the Rothman Center when they face second-seeded Bergen Catholic. It will be another chance to uphold the third seed they received prior to the tournament.
“The soft NBIL and the big bad NNJIL,” Avento said, “They can say what they want, but we play on the court.”
“Whether we were the three or the four or the six, it doesn’t matter,” Kirkby expressed. “We knew we were facing tough teams, and as far as you want to go in the Jamboree, you’re going to have to win tough games.”
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