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Sports

Spartans Fall in 1st Round of Class LL Tourney

Amity's boys' varsity basketball season came to an end Monday night against Staples of Westport, 52-37.

A solid defensive effort on its home court propelled No.12 seed Staples past No. 21 Amity, 52-37, Monday night and into the second round of the CIAC boys' basketball state tournament.

Senior co-captain Luke Yeager scored a game-high 23 points for the Wreckers (16-6), who earned a third crack against FCIAC rival Ridgefield in the second round on Wednesday.

Junior Mike Argosh added 15 points for Staples. Although he only scored six points, Wreckers senior co-captain Gabe Seidman played a pivotal role on defense, grabbing eight rebounds and four steals.

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“Our 1-3-1 defense is our bread-and-butter,” Staples head coach Colin Devine said. “Turnovers lead to easy baskets, and easy baskets lead to victory.”

Although the first quarter ended evenly for both teams, two turnovers forced by Staples’ relentless defense early in the second period allowed it to quickly seize momentum.

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Staples' 1-3-1 defense resulted in 12 turnovers for the Spartans in the first half. Seven of these came in a second quarter, when Amity shot 0-for-5 from the field and scored only a single point.

“It just felt like we were missing shots that we had hit all season long,” Amity head coach Jeff Nielsen said.  “Stretches like that [second quarter] really make the difference because other than that, I felt that it was very evenly matched.”

In spite of their offensive woes, the Spartans (13-10) looked promising for stretches on defense, especially when senior Hunter Ricks, who recorded four steals coming off the bench, was defending Yeager.

However, Yeager’s proficiency from long-range ultimately prevailed, as his five 3-pointers led the Wreckers to the win despite an advantage in the paint for Amity.

The Spartans dominated the glass, outrebounding the Wreckers 29- 24, 10 of which were offensive boards.

Amity also made its presence in the paint clear with six blocks and forced 13 turnovers, but the Spartans' struggles on offense prevented them from ever chipping away at Staples’ lead.

“I feel we did a great job this game of keeping in it defensively, even after we dug ourselves into an early hole,” Nielsen said. “We played a good game, but Staples played a little better.”

Sophomore Zachary Campbell led the way for Amity with 10 points and six  rebounds. Co-captain Patrick Sasso scored six points and grabbed 13 rebounds while fellow co-captain Grant Watkins chipped in with points.

Ridgefield won the two earlier meetings against Staples, although both were early in the season.

The winner of Wednesday's contest takes on either Holy Cross or Southington in the quarterfinals on Friday.

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