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Friday Night Live with PrepTalkTV: Jamestown wins at Lancaster, 69-61

No city games today, so PrepTalkTV's Friday Night Live schedule is a little more compressed. Some key games and some tough decisions about where to go.

Here's our take on tonight:

Read previews of top games and get updated results as we get them at our scoreboard page, which can also accessed through the high school home page.

As always, if you were at a game tonight, let us know how it went here in our comments section.

* * * 

6:56 p.m. We've started at Tonawanda, which is hosting JFK in an extremely pivotal ECIC IV game.

Great crowd here from both schools, nice "Tribe" student section on hand for the home team Warriors, and good energy early on from both teams and both benches. 

With 1:34 left in the first quarter, Tonawanda calls a timeout holding an 11-10 lead.

7 p.m. At the end of the first quarter, Tonawanda leads JFK, 12-10.

7:08 p.m. Jesse Lalka goes to the line with 5:04 left in the second quarter and hits two to put Tonawanda up, 14-13. I have a feeling this matchup between the teams won't go into the 80s like their first contest did. Only natural, I suppose, with the importance of the game.

7:22 p.m. At HALFTIME, Tonawanda leads JFK, 25-24. Nice exchange of threes late in the half for both teams.

UPDATE from TML1000 of the Prep Talk blog at Lew-Port: Lew-Port leads Kenmore West, 15-14, after one quarter after the host Lancers started with a 7-0 lead.

I've got to boogie to Jamestown at Lancaster while video reporter Lauren Mariacher is off to South Buffalo and Canisius at Bishop Timon-St. Jude.

8:02 p.m. Hello from Lancaster. Nice of the JV game to go late for me, because they tipped off literally as I walked into the gym.

8:07 p.m. With 1:24 left in the first quarter, Lancaster coach Conrad Walters calls a timeout. Jamestown leads, 14-11.

UPDATE from Lew-Port: Kenmore West leads, 41-38, after three. It was 29-28 Lew-Port at the half.

UPDATE from Lauren Mariacher in South Buffalo: Canisius leads Bishop Timon-St. Jude, 28-18, with 2:58 left in the first half.

8:11 p.m. At the END OF THE FIRST QUARTER, Jamestown leads at Lancaster, 16-13.

8:15 p.m. Jamestown coach Ben Drake calls a timeout with 5:18 left in the second quarter after two fast-break baskets by Lancaster cut the Jamestown leads to 24-19.

Big play right after the timeout -- Jaysean Paige picked up his second foul, an offensive foul clearing out some space for himself in the post, with 5:05 left in the second and he heads to the bench.

8:25 p.m. At HALFTIME, Jamestown leads Lancaster, 32-27.

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Snow likely to wipe out most of Wednesday's schedule

Wednesday's basketball schedule wasn't the busiest (two boys games and 10 girls games), but it's likely to be wiped out due to several school districts already having canceled classes.

In other scheduling notes to pass along:

* Tonight's Archbishop Walsh at St. Mary's game has been postponed to Saturday, Feb. 12 at 4 p.m. due to weather forecasts and travel concerns.

Also, the Cardinal O'Hara at St. Mary's game originally scheduled for Friday has been rescheduled to Sunday at 1:30 p.m.

* An email send out by Jamestown's athletic department states that the rescheduled game of Jamestown at Williamsville North (which was postponed two Fridays ago) is now set for Monday, Feb. 7. Originally word was that the game had been scheduled for Tuesday, Feb. 8.

* * *

Coaches and/or athletic directors should notify The News ASAP if you have postponements. Call 849-4461 or email kmcshea@buffnews.com AND sports@buffnews.com.

Check out our basketball scoreboard through the evening -- and every evening -- for updates on all the action.

---Keith McShea

buffalonews.com/high-schools     facebook.com/preptalkblog     twitter.com/bufnewspreptalk

Jamestown-Will North games rescheduled

The highly anticipated ECIC I showdown of Jamestown at Williamsville North, which was postponed last Friday, has been rescheduled.

On Tuesday, Feb. 8, Jamestown will play at Will North at 7:30. Originally, Feb. 8 was the date of the Will North at Jamestown game; instead, Will North will head to Jamestown on Saturday, Feb. 12 at 6:30 p.m.

Coaches and/or athletic directors should notify The News ASAP if you have postponements. Call 849-4461 or email kmcshea@buffnews.com AND sports@buffnews.com.

Check out our basketball scoreboard through the evening -- and every evening -- for updates on all the action.

---Keith McShea

buffalonews.com/high-schools     facebook.com/preptalkblog     twitter.com/bufnewspreptalk

Will North-Jamestown boys hoops among games postponed

We got a call to the office that the ECIC I showdown between Jamestown and Williamsville North has been postponed due to weather and Jamestown having to do its usual long traveling. No reschedule date as of yet.

Also, tonight's St. Mary's at St. Francis game has been postponed to Sunday at 3 p.m.; the St. Joe's at Archbishop Walsh game has been postponed to Feb. 2.

Check out our basketball scoreboard through the evening for any other postponements and updates on tonight's action. 

Coaches and/or athletic directors should notify The News ASAP if you have postponements. Call 849-4461 or email sports@buffnews.com. 

---Keith McShea

buffalonews.com/high-schools     facebook.com/preptalkblog     twitter.com/bufnewspreptalk

Friday Night Live with PrepTalkTV: Bennett knocks off No. 5 McKinley; Maryvale wins big at Depew (with video)

PrepTalkTV returns tonight on what is a very busy night in hoops.

We'll be making stops at various games -- myself and video reporter Lauren Mariacher were planning to finish the night at Jamestown at Williamsville North, but with its postponement we're reconfiguring our game plan.

Here's our video preview as we get our evening started:

You can check out tonight's extensive lineup -- and the postponements -- at our basketball scoreboard, which we continue to upgrade. When "summary" is listed as part of tonight's schedule, click on that to get a mini-preview of that game. As tonight's scores get updated, clicking "summary" will get you the box score and in some cases a recap of the game -- you can check out that feature on last night's (Thursday's) games.

5:55 p.m. Our first stop is at Bennett High as the Tigers host No. 5 large school McKinley, and it's off to a great start for the home team. Bennett jumped to leads of 15-1 and 17-2 and lead 21-10 in the final minute of the first quarter.

After Bennett won at Riverside on Wednesday, I thought this would be a good one -- but I didn't expect the Tigers to go rout city in the first quarter. Impressive.

Bennett's huddle is a happy one after a very nice first quarter. (Keith McShea/Buffalo News) 5:59 p.m. At the end of the first quarter, Bennett leads McKinley, 23-12.

Great job by the Tigers with some excellent transition baskets, an ability to not get caught up in the McKinley pressure, and a great job getting back on defense to nullify Mack fast breaks. McKinley got tougher on the defensive end and it some shots to at least find its footing and dig into the lead.

6:07 p.m. Bennett with a 32-21 lead after a three-pointer by starting guard Derrick Turner.

6:12 p.m. Bennett is getting a nice push in the second quarter -- another three by Turner bumps the lead to 41-26 with 1:51 left in the second and Bennett coach Randy Rakowski calls a timeout.

6:20 p.m. We are at HALFTIME and Bennett has a 42-33 lead on McKinley. Big three-pointer in the final minute by the Macks' Jermaine Canty -- which followed a Bennett turnover caused by McKinley's backcourt pressure -- to get the lead under 10 at the break.

6:35 p.m. Bennett coach Rakowski calls a timeout with 4:59 left in the third and the Tigers holding a 52-39 lead. Bennett went back up by as many as 15 (50-35) in the quarter, a great start to the second half for them when it looked as if McKinley was ready to really dig out of its hole.

6:40 p.m.Forest Richardson, who had 10 for Bennett at halftime, has put on a couple of very nice moves here in the third, including a great pass to set up a layup by big man Derrick Quarles -- who scored while being fouled -- to give Bennett a 54-39 lead. Right now it is Bennett, 58-41, with 3:03 left in the third and McKinley coach Zaire Dorsey having called for the timeout.

Bennett looks really good. Very composed yet explosive on offense. Hard-working on defense. Good balance in the lineup with bigs and good guard play.

On the other hand, this is not the McKinley team we've seen all season. They don't seem to have the same defensive intensity and they've made some poor decisions on offense. Bennett has definitely had a lot to do with that -- they've set the pace for the game, they've been the aggressors.

6:48 p.m. At the end of the third quarter, Bennett leads McKinley, 60-47. Still a chance for the Macks to make it more of a game, but the Tigers have been tough -- very impressive third quarter for the hosts. Let's see if they can close the Macks out and get a second big win in a row.

A big play in the third had Bennett's Jahad Wiley block a fast-break dunk attempt by Antonio Avery -- Wiley was rightly called for a foul on the play but the crowd loved it and his team loved it, good symbolic not-in-our-house play, and it was nearly clean. Big play. Avery would make one of two free throws with 2:01 left in the third to make it a 58-42 Bennett lead then.

6:57 p.m. Entertaining start to the quarter with Bennett still answering every comeback attempt. Tigers lead, 66-57, with McKinley having just called a timeout with 3:33 left in the game.

7:05 p.m. We've got a great finish. The Macks have pulled within 69-65 with 1:30 to go and Bennett's Richardson going to the line.

7:09 p.m. McKinley timeout with 1:14 left and Bennett up, 71-65, thanks to a fast-break basket by Wiley that brought the house down.

7:11 p.m. McKinley timeout with :59 left and Bennett up, 71-67, with the ball.

7:15 p.m. Bennett up, 73-67, going to the line with 43 seconds left.

7:16 p.m. Bennett up, 73-67, going to the line with 18 seconds left.

7:17 p.m. One of two at line. Bennett, 74-67, with 12.4 seconds left and the ball. Bennett fans starting to celebrate -- LOUDly.

7:09 p.m. We have a FINAL SCORE: Bennett 76, McKinley 67. Exclamation point was a McKenzie Brown DUNK in the final seconds. WOW.

We're hitting the road -- but what a game here. We'll have the box score up in moments and more details as the night goes on.

Here are the final seconds of Bennett's win over McKinley, including Brown's finishing dunk (there will be more on our PrepTalkTV episode):

8:32 p.m. First chance to update with the postgame interviews and writing at Bennett and a trip out to Depew: It is HALFTIME and visiting Maryvale leads, 28-23.

Report from video reporter Lauren Mariacher: JFK wins at Cleveland Hill, 50-44. Big ECIC IV win there for the Bears.

8:52 p.m. Great quarter for Maryvale, which now leads, 52-36. Flyers got a little bit of everything while Depew struggled to score.

9:04 p.m. Maryvale's lead has reached 58-40 early in the fourth.

9:07 p.m. Maryvale coach Mark Kensy calls a timeout with 4:01 left and the Flyers up, 62-44.

A mini-breakdown of that third quarter for Maryvale: Shane Mullen and Ty Buczkowski hit threes, Andrew Luckey went 4-for-4 from the line and Blair Estarfaa had three baskets for six points.

9:19 p.m. We have a FINAL SCORE: Maryvale 70, Depew 46.

Off to get interviews and stats and to do some PrepTalkTV work.

Be sure to check out our basketball scoreboard for all of tonight's action.

Here's tonight's roundup.

---Keith McShea

buffalonews.com/high-schools     facebook.com/preptalkblog     twitter.com/bufnewspreptalk

Tuesday Evening Live: Jamestown, Kenmore West win big (with video)

Hello from Kenmore West, my first stop of at least two tonight. West is hosting Kenmore East in their first rivalry game, with the girls to follow at 7 p.m.

Decent West crown on hand to see the home team do the Blue Devil (pictured on wall at right) proud. (Keith McShea/Buffalo News) I'm definitely ending up at Clarence at Jamestown (7:30 p.m. start) but I might try and squeeze in a visit to Cheektowaga, which is hosting Depew in a 6:30 p.m. start. I think I want to be at Clarence for the beginning of that one, so I might just head there.

6:49 p.m. The boys game started at 5:30 p.m., but as I said last week, the only good reason to be late for a basketball game is if you're coming from another one (weekly pickup ball).

I walked in with West up, 57-42, heading into the fourth quarter. I kind of wished it was a closer game, but I'm sure the home folks disagree. :-) It will be good to get a first look at Ken West, whose most notable game was a close loss at Niagara Falls that certainly turned some heads.

West now has a 67-52 lead with about four minutes left.

6:56 p.m. A lot of free throws since I've been here -- and some threes. Donte Bono just hit his second of the quarter for East to cut the West lead to 67-56 with just over two minutes to go.

6:59 p.m. P.J. Blanch gets fouled on an aggressive drive to basket and hits two free throws to cut the lead to 67-58 with 1:58 left.

7:01 p.m. Blanch goes down in great pain with 55.6 seconds left and East calls a timeout still trailing by 67-58.

7:04 p.m. Just got a picture of Martin Bailey hitting the first of what would be two free throws. West added another for a 70-58 lead with less than 30 seconds left.

7:05 p.m. We have a FINAL SCORE: Kenmore West 71, Kenmore East 58.

Seventh win in a row for the Blue Devils. Nice job by West -- I can see how they could cause teams problems. They played very composed and smart with a lead from what I watched. Four players in double figures plus 6-foot-4, 230-pound sophomore Quinton Campbell grabbing 14 rebounds.

7:15 p.m. Going to input the box score for the Web and then hit the road. I'll probably head right to Clarence.

Here's Ken West coach Michael Meetze on the win and his team's season.

8:09 p.m. I'm telling you, the ride to Clarence is longggg. I've made tons of trips here over the last year with the school's success in soccer, softball, lacrosse, football and hoops. For some reason, when you think about heading to Clarence you think it's close, when it's really not. These are things this Prep Talk-er has to think about when planning coverage.

We took advantage of the time, however. I was able to upload the Meetze video above during the trip -- don't worry, we were safe: we did it during the many red lights on Sheridan Drive from the Town of Tonawanda to Clarence.

Hello from what the locals call the Devils' Den, where Jamestown has a 18-16 lead after one quarter and renowned DJ Dominic Taverna is doing his thing on the PA.

Jamestown during a timeout with a quality student section on hand for Clarence in the background. (Keith McShea/Buffalo News) Most notable is that Jaysean Paige, the junior who seems to be scoring 30-something each night, did not start and did not play the entire quarter. 

8:10 p.m. Paige takes the shooting shirt off and is in for the start of the second quarter.

8:12 p.m. Paige with a sweet three from the left side, nice and easy and a swish for a 23-16 lead for the Red Raiders.

8:16 p.m. David Hill hits a three for Clarence to cut it to 23-19 with about 4:30 left in the second quarter.

8:17 p.m. Paige with a nice bounce-pass assist underneath to Darin Butts for a 25-19 Jamestown lead with under 3:30 left in second.

8:18 p.m. Paige with a very nice pullup; again, nice and easy. Tyler Funk answers inside to make it 27-23. Funk blocks Paige on the other end, but the official says there was body involved and calls a foul I didn't see. Paige hits 1 of 2; 28-23 Jamestown with 2:33 left in second.

8:20 p.m. David Hill with a nice drive down the right side, answered by a Butts fast-break in which he was totally unguarded on the breakout. Hill with a nice dribble-fake and hanging jumper; but again, no one guards Butts and he scores a fast-break finger roll for a 32-26 lead. 

Steven Hughes hits two at the line. 32-28 Jamestown; again, answered promptly by a Jamestown fast break. Mike Rademacher from Vince Taverna on a nice penetration and dish with a minute left for Clarence (34-31 Jamestown). Nice layup by 40 on a well-done play for Jamestown.

Butts called for a reach-in which the Jamestown fans don't like with 10.4 seconds left, sending 22 to the line but he misses the front end of teh one-and-one. Jamestown runs a nice inbounds play in the final seconds. 

8:24 p.m. At halftime, Jamestown leads at Clarence, 36-31.

8:36 p.m. Jamestown's lead is 41-31 as it has started the half with Paige scoring two baskets, the second of which he turned into a three-point play.

8:37 p.m. Tommy Campion with a great reverse layup to prompt a Clarence timeout with 6:29 left in the third quarter. Jamestown leads, 45-33. Steven Hughes had Clarence's previous basket; Paige answered in transition.

8:39 p.m. Funk with a very good-looking turnaround jumper; 45-35 Jamestown under 6:15.

8:40 p.m. Butts with a nice shake and score; Rademacher answers with a putback; 47-37 Jamestown. Offensive foul on Jamestown with 5:04 left in third.

8:42 p.m. Chris Carlson scores inside to make it 49-38 Jamestown with 4:34 left in the third, prompting another timeout from Clarence coach Todd Banaszak.

8:44 p.m. Three-pointer for Adam Cecchini rolls around and in; 52-38 Jamestown with about four left in third. David Hill hits two free throws with 3:49 left; 52-40. Tommy Campion hits a jumper almost immediately after; Jamestown, 54-40.

8:50 p.m. Showtime for Jamestown. Back-to-back dunks by Butts and then Paige. Paige's dunk came off a behind-the-back fast-break pass from Butts and made the score 62-42 with 1:08 left. A technical was called on Paige but I'm not sure why.

8:53 p.m. At the end of the third quarter, Jamestown leads at Clarence, 62-47.

Back in a few minutes.

9:14 p.m. OK, that was more than a few. I was shooting video and I've updated our Web basketball scoreboard with details on the Kenmore West win. 

Jamestown has maintained its big lead and is closing in on a win.

Some highlights from the fourth quarter:

9:15 p.m. We have a FINAL SCORE: Jamestown 79, Clarence 67.

More details, highlights and interviews to come, and check that link above to the scoreboard for the box score and a recap for this game.

The postgame show:

* * *

Some thoughts after a look over our scoreboard: Nice win for Cheektowaga over Depew tonight in that game I wanted to check out. ... Eyebrow-raising score is West Seneca West with a low score but a big win as it defeats Lancaster. The Redskins continue to show some inconsistency -- the last time out they won at Clarence to complete a season sweep, and they played Jamestown super-tough down there, but they've also had a big loss to Depew. ... How about triple digits in the Niagara-Orleans League as Newfane outruns and outguns CSAT, 102-80. Wowww. ... Maryvale has no trouble with an East Aurora team that beat Cheektowaga last week in a 19-point win. ... Erik O'Bryan and Niagara-Wheatfield win in O'Bryan's return to his old school at North Tonawanda. ... Portville with a nice home win over Salamanca by four. 

---Keith McShea

buffalonews.com/high-schools     facebook.com/preptalkblog     twitter.com/bufnewspreptalk

Friday Night Live from the Cataract Classic: Falls beats Jamestown, 62-54; St. Joe's beats Depew, Lancaster tops N-W (with video)

Hello from what locals call the "Wolv-arena," the Niagara Falls High School gym, for Day One of the Cataract Classic. We've got quite a season opener for Niagara Falls and Jamestown scheduled for 8 p.m., but there are two games before that: Lancaster vs. Niagara-Wheatfield at 5 p.m. and St. Joe's-Depew at 6:30. 

5:42 p.m. We arrive at halftime of the first time, get situated, and can't help but chuckle at the score. Lancaster leads, 14-8. Yes, that's halftime. Hey, it's early.

New N-W coach Erik O'Bryan is in there somewhere. (Keith McShea/Buffalo News) Then I found out the first quarter score. It was 3-3. OK, it's reallllly early. Actually, Lancaster has played three games, winning its own tournament and getting a great ECIC I-opening win over Clarence last night in overtime. So we'll chalk it up to back-to-back games for one team early in the season, and the season opener for the other team, which has a new coach in Erik O'Bryan, formerly of North Tonawanda.

6:02 p.m. After a much better third quarter (we appreciate not being here for the first half :-) ), Lancaster leads Niagara-Wheatfield, 27-16.

The Redskins did well running its offense to get some good shots, while it forced several turnovers by N-W.

6:16 p.m. N-W keeps scratching and clawing and O'Bryan keeps on his Falcons, but Lancaster has maintained a 10-point lead (38-28) as we head under two minutes.

6:29 p.m. We have a FINAL SCORE: Lancaster 43, Niagara-Wheatfield 34.

JJ Harrington earned MVP honors for Lancaster.

6:48 p.m. Check out the high school home page for the box score of the game -- that's a cool new feature of our new Web program, which will have futher improvements over the next few weeks.

We're about to tip off with St. Joe's and Depew.  

St. Joe's starters: 5-11 senior A. Keith Louie, 5-10 senior Steven Moser, 6-3 junior Chad Kelly, 6-3 senior Connor Rehbaum and 6-5 senior Jake Spitler.

Depew starters: 5-8 senior Rick Anna, 6-5 junior Jaden Cotton, 5-11 junior Aaron Ertel, 6-3 senior Sam Sallaj and 6-1 freshman Derrick Sekuterski.

Chad Kelly (left), Reggie Agbeko (center) during warmups. (Keith McShea/Buffalo News)
6:57 p.m. Not in the starting lineup is St. Joe's transfer Reggie Agbeko, a 6-7 junior who is likely a draw for UB assistant coach Jim Kwitchoff, who is on hand and spoke with both coaches before the tip.

6:58 p.m. Agbeko checks in with 3:22 left in the first quarter with Depew up, 3-2.

7:04 p.m. Not a great night for first quarters here at the Wolvearena. St. Joe's leads Depew, 6-3.

7:07 p.m. Depew coach Larry Jones hollers for a timeout with St. Joe's up, 10-5, with 6:44 left in the second quarter. Rehbaum just put in a very nice floater of a drive down the right side a moment ago.

7:22 p.m. We are at halftime and St. Joe's leads Depew, 16-11. The Marauders had a great final possession of the half after a timeout with less than three seconds left, and senior guard Edward Zimheld knocked down a three-pointer from the right side. Depew had played very well in the later stages of the second quarter with good defense and good passing. Joe's had gone up, 13-7, on a three by Rehbaum.

Agbeko picked up a second foul on a charge with 4:19 left in the second and sat the rest of the quarter.

7:40 p.m. Depew's Jones needs a timeout with 4:54 left in the third as St. Joe's has used some good defense to go up, 24-11. Moser had two straight steal-and-layups and Louie later added a clean rip of a ballhandler to give him a layup.

7:42 p.m. Agbeko has shown some serious flashes in the last minute or so, going up to grab a man-among-boys rebound and then going up where few players can get to finish a putback up by the rim. Just now he grabbed a rebound off a missed free throw, skying high enough that I let out a wow, high enough that the Depew player waiting to go in the game said, "that boy gets UP."

7:44 p.m. The lead for St. Joe's is 26-13 with 2:23 left in the third.

7:46 p.m. Rehbaum picked up his third foul after Moser's two steals and just reentered the game with about 1:30 left in the third.

7:48 p.m. Agbeko just picked up his fourth on a reach-in with 45.3 seconds left in the third.

7:51 p.m. After three quarters, St. Joe's leads Depew, 28-15.

7:59 p.m. St. Joe's keeps scoring in transition and now leads, 32-17. Nice crowd filing in here -- should be a great atmosphere for the Falls-Jamestown game.  

8:09 p.m. We have a FINAL SCORE: St. Joe's 45, Depew 27. Some interviewing to do for me. 

8:20 p.m. The always-fun Falls pep band is ready to go. They just changed over to new Falls coach Sal Constantino: "Hey Sal! Oooooh, nice tie!"  

8:33 p.m. We're underway.

8:39 p.m. Jamestown coach Ben Drake calls a timeout with 4:04 left in the first quarter and Falls up, 11-6, on a jumper by Taijay Williams, a 5-10 junior. Other starters for Falls: 6-3 senior Marcus Feagin, 5-8 junior Jamere Ollison, 5-8 sophomore Ja'leo Wilkins and 6-5 senior Jordan Street.

Jamestown starts 5-8 sophomore Tommy Campion, 6-1 junior Jaysean Paige, 5-8 senior Joey Campion, 6-4 senior Chris Carlson and 6-3 senior Darin Butts.

8:45 p.m. A lot of action here, and Drake calls another timeout with 1:41 left in the first and Falls up, 17-11. Jordan Street has looked very, very good -- he has scored the last six points and has been more aggressive than I remember at any time last season.

8:47 p.m. Street made an unwise move to try and take a charge with two fouls. Now he's got three and heads to the bench with 50.9 seconds left in the first quarter. Rookie coach error there maybe, having him in the game with two, but, like I just wrote, he was doing some great things.

8:49 p.m. After one quarter, Falls has a 19-12 lead on Jamestown in what has been an exciting, fun-to-watch game. Constantino is hopping up and down the sidelines, has already lost his voice, and you can tell that energy has translated to his team. They're playing tough defense, have forced several turnovers, and they have gotten to the basket very well, batting balls around and basically making the game a frenetic one. Which is the way many people have wanted Falls to play for a long time.

8:54 p.m. Jaysean Paige gets up very impressively, but he's up too far, hangs on the rim and is rightly called for an technical foul.

9 p.m. Constantino calls the first timeout of his career with 3:05 left in the second quarter and Falls up, 31-16.

9:06 p.m. We are at HALFTIME and Niagara Falls has a 38-19 lead on Jamestown. The Wolverines are playing some fun, hustling, frenetic basketball. There may be an urge to say, "Falls is back," but it's only halftime -- and actually, it's a different team, different playing style. I would just suggest you get out here Saturday night for Game Two.

That said, Jamestown is on the road in a super-tough place to play for its season opener, and they are a good program with a good coach. This game isn't over.

9:26 p.m. Jamestown came out in the third quarter playing very cool, ready to get back in the game and they started with a few baskets, but Falls put together another nice run to push back (45-26). Jamestown still keeps coming and Constantino takes a timeout with a little over three minutes left in the third with Falls leading, 47-33.

9:37 p.m. Things are tightening up here. At the end of the third quarter, Falls leads Jamestown, 51-38.

9:43 p.m. We've got ourselves a ball game. Falls calls a timeout with 4:11 left to play and Jamestown having cut the lead to 52-48.

9:49 p.m. Some fantastic back-and-forth action here. Wilkins has come up with steals on the last two Jamestown possessions and Williams has hit two three-pointers to help Falls hold off the Red Raiders to this point. Falls leads, 58-50, with 1:00 left in the game; timeout Jamestown as Williams heads to the line. 

9:56 p.m. We have a FINAL SCORE: Niagara Falls 62, Jamestown 54.

I gotta write a story very quickly.

---Keith McShea

buffalonews.com/high-schools     facebook.com/preptalkblog     twitter.com/bufnewspreptalk

2010-11 boys hoops, here we come: Niagara Falls' Cataract Classic field is set

Yes, the All-Western New York basketball issue just came out.

And yes, this is a post about the 2010-11 schedule.

One of the top early-season showcases is already set: the Cataract Classic at Niagara Falls. Event organizer Sal Constantino emailed the schedule to us today.

As always, a great mix of teams and some great matchups. Here it is:

Friday, Dec. 10
North Tonawanda vs. Lancaster, 5 p.m.
St. Joe's vs. Depew, 6:30 p.m.
Niagara Falls vs. Jamestown, 8 p.m.

Saturday, Dec. 11
Wilson vs. St. Mary's/Lanc., noon
V-Charles Finney vs. Amherst, 1:30 p.m.
V-Batavia vs. Williamsville North, 3 p.m.

Williamsville South vs. Canisius, 5 p.m.
Niagara Catholic vs. East Aurora, 6:30 p.m.
V-Aquinas vs. Niagara Falls, 8 p.m.

I sure hope the Pastor-Cooper Tournament is the week before (Nov. 29-Dec. 3) -- that's the way things have gone down the last two years. I've covered a state championship football game on the last Sunday in November and then seen some hoops at Daemen the next day.

We won't have a building-the-schedule post up for a little while yet, but if anyone out there has some confirmed dates, please feel free to add them here or to email me at kmcshea@buffnews.com.

---Keith McShea

buffalonews.com/highschool     facebook.com/preptalkblog     twitter.com/bufnewspreptalk

Video: Far West Regional wrapup by PrepTalkTV

Two Section VI teams -- Middle College and Maple Grove -- will be moving on to the state final four after Section VI went 2 for 5 in Saturday's Far West Regionals.

The video is accessible at the buffalonews.com home page or via our video player page

Reporter/videographer/producer Lauren Mariacher was under the weather so thanks much to Joe Popiolkowski for filling in.

Let us know what you think.

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Also check out an extensive photo gallery by News photographer Mark Mulville.

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Here's your own PrepTalkTV DVR loaded with our previous episodes:

* Overall A & B finals (March 13): Williamsville South, Olean move on to the regionals.

* Championship Saturday (March 6): Winning titles were, in order, Akron (B-2), Olean (B-1), East (A-2), Williamsville South (A-1) and Jamestown (AA).

* Section VI C & D championships (March 5): Middle College (C) and Maple Grove (D) are champions.

* Manhattan Cup championship (Feb. 28): Nichols and its seniors romp to the title.

* Section VI quarterfinals (Feb. 27): Clarence and North Tonawanda have big wins and we look ahead to the final fours at Buffalo State and Jamestown Community College. 

* Manhattan Cup semifinals (Feb. 23): Nichols-Canisius showdown set after both win big.

* Scarcello's buzzer-beater helps Timon to final four (Feb. 21): Bishop Timon-St. Jude got past St. Joe's in a Manhattan Cup quarterfinal thriller to join Nichols, Canisius and St. Mary's in the semifinals.

* Last day of the regular season (Feb. 19): Middle College wins the Yale Cup, Lancaster beats Depew.

* Big wins for Nichols, East (Feb. 17): Nichols clobbers Canisius, East tops Grover Cleveland.

* Nowak's buzzer-beater stuns Jamestown (Feb. 12): Orchard Park's thrilling win, plus action from Nichols and Lackawanna.

Super Tuesday (Feb. 9): North Tonawanda sweeps Niagara Falls; Maryvale and McKinley win on the busiest night of the year.

Sweet Home is ShellStrong (Feb. 5): Panthers basketball hosts a great fundraising night.

---Keith McShea

buffalonews.com/highschool     facebook.com/preptalkblog     twitter.com/bufnewspreptalk

Live from the AA regional: V-East and coach Barley beat Jamestown, 50-49

Hello from another great hoop day at Buffalo State. By the end of the day we'll know who is headed to Glens Falls from the Far West Regionals.

It's time for the grand finale of our five games today, the AA final. An announcement has been made that it will start at 8:30 p.m.

DISCLAIMER: I won't be able to answer too many questions because it gets pretty busy here, especially late in games, and especially now that I've got the iPhone video going. Also, please try and limit questions to this game, especially during crunch time. THANKS for your understanding.

---Keith McShea

buffalonews.com/highschool     facebook.com/preptalkblog     twitter.com/bufnewspreptalk
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About Prep Talk

Keith McShea

Keith McShea

Keith McShea has covered high school sports at The News since his hiring in 1999. The 1995 University at Buffalo graduate and Long Island native (North Babylon Bulldogs) covers — and live blogs — everything from scrimmages to state championships & helps head The News' All-Western New York selections.

@KeithMcSheaBN | kmcshea@buffnews.com


Launren Nicole Mariacher

Lauren Nicole Mariacher

Lauren Nicole Mariacher joined The News in 2009 after graduating from the Columbia University School of Journalism. The Elma native and Iroquois graduate can usually be found on a sideline, capturing highlights for PrepTalkTV. She also hosts Prep Talk's weekly live show, with Keith McShea, as well as The News' live postgame Bills show — [BN]TheHuddle.

@Lolo_Nicole | lmariacher@buffnews.com

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