Lake George tops Stillwater
A 3-point barrage the difference in Class C final
GLENS FALLS, N.Y. >> It doesn’t take a math major to prove three is more than two.
So, although Stillwater’s boys basketball team made 23 field goals to 19 for Lake George in their Section II Class C final, an 11-2 advantage in 3-pointers was the difference in the game.
No. 4 seed Lake George went 7-for-9 from behind the arc in the second quarter, then held off a second-half run from No. 2 Stillwater for a 69-54 win at the Glens Falls Civic Center.
“It’s overwhelming joy for these guys,” Lake George coach Dave Jones said. “I wear my heat on my sleeve. We focused on effort. We tried a little harder each (game).”
No one shot better in the first half than Caleb Scrime, who made four 3s in the second quarter, and finished with 26 points. Last season, he was part of the Lake George team that fell to Saratoga Catholic in the final. On Saturday Scrime was named Tournament MVP.
“It was huge motivation,” Scrime said of the loss a year ago. “It was heartbreaking.”
Lake George went into the game playing a boxand-1 on Stillwater leading scorer Jared D’Aloia. The No. 2 seed found success throwing the ball to Zack Travis and Ezra Echeandia instead, but scoring wasn’t the issue.
“We got beat by a team that shot as well as anyone I’ve seen shoot in this building before,” Stillwater coach Dave Cook said. “They absolutely deserve to move on. They were the better team tonight.”
Jon Hill made a floater at the buzzer to pull Stillwater to within 44-30 at the break.
Alex Jones made 3-pointer to start the third quarter for Lake George but Stillwater began to chip away at the lead.
Encheandia started a run with an offensive putback, D’Aloia made a jumper and Nate Thrane went 1-for-2 from the line to cut the deficit to 50-43.
That’s as close as Stillwater got the rest of the contest.
Lake George led 5040 after three quarters and continued to make just enough shots the rest of the way to maintain a comfortable lead. A 2026 performance from the free throw line also helped clinch the title.
Jones finished with 17 points and was selected to the All-Tournament team while Mason Flately made two 3-pointers and had nine points in the win.
It was the final game in the stellar high school careers of seniors D’Aloia, who finished with 13 points and Travis, who had a team-high 15. Both were named to the All-Tournament team.
“We fought back,” D’Aloia said.
“We didn’t crumble. I didn’t force any shots. I could have shot the ball a little more, honestly.
“I’ve had a great career, I know that. It’s all about hard work. That’s what we’re telling our underclassmen.”
“This group of seniors is really special,” Cook said. “I’m going to miss each of them very much.”