BOYS BASKETBALL: Adams outlasts Stoney Creek in battle of unbeatens
BY DAN STICKRADT
SENIOR EDITOR
dan.stickradt@northoaklandsports.com
Twitter: @LocalSportsFans
ROCHESTER HILLS — Rochester Adams and Rochester Stoney Creek draw several parallels.
The two schools reside five miles apart and the two rivals
currently sport boys basketball teams off to very fast starts in the 2015-16 season.
They both also have high hopes of contending for league championships this winter — Adams in the OAA Red Division and Stoney Creek in the OAA Blue Division.
The two also proved to be mirrors of one another out on the hard court Friday night.
Adams, off to its best start since going 21-1 in 2012-13, kept its perfect season in tact with a 66-63 OAA crossover victory over visiting Stoney Creek in front of a near-packed house.
Senior guard Spencer Littleson, fresh off a triple-double three days earlier in a 66-61 win over Sterling Heights Stevenson, finished with a game-high 30 points with five rebounds to pace Adams (6-0).
Senior guard Joey Zinetti added 17 points and four steals, 6-foot-8 senior post David Rinke chipped in with eight points and five boards and senior forward Michael Girdler followed with seven points and three assists for the Highlanders.
“It’s nice to have two teams from (Rochester) both playing well. It brought in a great atmosphere,” said Adams coach John Hall. “It was a close game throughout.
“We sometimes makes it harder than it needs to be,” continued Hall. “We go through stretches where we play really well offensively and defensively and other times where we go into lulls and play inconsistently. We could be a very good basketball team if we put it all together.”
Adams rushed out to a 8-0 lead and held a 21-17 advantage after eight minutes of play.
The sharp-shooting Cougars put Adams into a lull behind some dead-eye three-point shooting in the second quarter. Stoney Creek (6-1) ventured on a 18-13 run in the second quarter run to earn a 35-34 lead at the break.
Adams pulled back ahead 49-46 by the end of the third frame and built its largest lead at 55-46 with 4:54 to go on a pair of freebies from Girdler, which capped a 12-3 run over a 6:17 stretch beginning with 3:11 remaining in the third period.
“I think that stretch we started to pick up on both ends of the floor,” said Hall. “Stoney Creek is a very good (three-point) shooting team, so I was never comfortable.”
The Cougars stayed within striking range, eventually pulling to within 65-63 with 2.1 ticks left on a three-pointer by senior forward Spencer Holloman.
Littleson split a pair of free throws and time ran out on Stoney Creek before it could get off a desperation three-pointer in the final two seconds.
Senior forward Ben Reiter finished with a team-high 17 points and five rebounds for Stoney Creek. Senior guard Jon Paul Sinacola added 16 points and four assists and both Hollomon and junior guard Tanner Dean scored eight for the Cougars, who finished 11-for-25 from three-point range.
Category: Basketball, High School, High School (M-Z), Prep Wraps, Rochester Adams, Rochester Stoney Creek, Sport
