Strong Second Half Leads Williamsville North Past McKinley

By Mike Pidanick

After a sluggish first half saw Williamsville North score just 20 points in a non-league game against McKinley, the Spartans’ coaches had a pep talk for the players. They responded.

Williamsville North took control in the third quarter and went on to a 52-44 over the visiting Macks on Friday night in a hard-fought non-league contest between annual contenders.

“At halftime we challenged the kids to be a little bit more aggressive and not settle for jump shots and I thought we attacked the basket a heck of a lot better,” Will North coach Chuck Swierski said. “Any time you can get a win over a team like that it gives the kids confidence and it gives the program confidence. And it gets us off to a Merry Christmas.”

The first half consisted of a large amount of blocks from both sides. Sharp-shooting senior guard Corey Swiech boosted the Spartans from the start, burying all four of his 3-point tries in the first quarter.

“I didn’t play that well last game so I wanted to come out shooting strong and I think I did that,” Sweich said. “Everyone stepped up tonight, especially in the second half. We’ve been working hard in practice and we did a nice job with the game plan.”

Swiech finished with a game-high 19 points 13 coming in a first-half performance that kept the Spartans afloat and down just 21-20 at the break. His teammates heated up in the second half and North took control of the game with a 12-0 third-quarter run.

“We wanted to step up and give Corey some help,” Swierski said. “In the first half, Corey did everything for us. A couple other guys stepped up in the second half and that was huge for us.”

Jairus Huggins scored 15 points for the Spartans (4-1), while Joseph Nusall tossed in 10 and Jacob Belote added eight. For McKinley, Deon Nakye Spencer led the way with 15 points and Booze added 11 for the Macks.

The Spartans will now get ready to host the Five Guys Tournament that also includes St. Mary’s of Lancaster, Emerson and Williamsville East. The games will be played on Tuesday and Wednesday.

“I’m excited,” Sweich said. “It’s going to be a good tournament but I think we have a good chance of winning. I hope we play East in the finals, that’s always a good rivalry game.”