Fairfield stays perfect with win over McClain
Fairfield's Larkin Friend is defended by McClain's Jordan Bell. (HCP Photos/Jim Jones)
The Fairfield Lions traveled to Greenfield Tuesday night and showcased why their overall record on the season improved to 16-0 after defeating McClain, 53-30 in a non-conference game.
The Tigers looked very good both offensively and defensively early on and grabbed a surprising 13-5 lead after the first quarter was in the books.
McClain shared the basketball well on offense and had four of their five starters all score in the opening frame with Seth Weller and Owen Sykes both getting four points, Michael Noszka Jr. getting three on a long trifecta and senior Andrew Potts accounting for the other two points. Senior Larkin Friend scored four points in the opening quarter to lead Fairfield, and Cade Miller had the other two.
Things quickly changed to begin the second period when Fairfield opened with a 9-0 run and took their first lead of the game on a basket by Friend off a steal. Friend ended the contest as the game’s leading scorer with 19 points.
The Lions went on to win the quarter convincingly by scoring 18 points and holding McClain to just four, and Fairfield led at the half 24-17.
“At the beginning of the game, we let them get too comfortable with their dribble penetration, and they were getting into the paint,” said Fairfield head coach Quentin Williams. “But from that point on, we executed our scouting report a lot better and made Greenfield rush and look a little more uncomfortable by bringing a lot more energy, and that was kind of the difference in the game.”
The Lions also started switching up their defense with a lot more pressure in the second period and continued it throughout the rest of the contest, forcing McClain into several miscues.
“We switched it up some defensively in the second quarter. I wanted to start with a full court earlier, but I know Coach Noszka is a good coach and he would probably be ready for it,” Williams said “So I didn’t want to start off with it too soon, but we did throw it in there a few times trying to show them different looks in the half and full court, making them have different reads and speeding them up, and I think we did a pretty good job of that.”
Five Fairfield players scored in the second quarter with Friend leading the way with seven points, followed by Logan McIntosh with four and Cade Miller with three.
Things didn’t get any better for McClain in the third and fourth periods when they were held to just 13 total points by the Lions’ aggressive defensive pressure.
Fairfield’s offense continued to click in the second half when they outscored McClain 19-6 in the third and 10-7 in the fourth.
“I think our defense was pretty good after that first quarter,” Williams said. “We held them to just 17 points the rest of the game, so you really can’t ask for any more than that on the defensive end.
“On the offensive end, our senior leader Larkin Friend was fantastic tonight. He, along with everyone else on the team, is so un-selfish with the basketball, and you never know whose night it’s going to be offensively. Larkin does so many things well for us — leads us in points, rebounds, assists and even had a couple of blocks tonight. You just don’t see too many kids who can affect a game like he does. He’s a special player.”
McClain head coach Michael Noszka spoke after the game about Fairfield and his team’s performance and was still pleased with their overall effort.
“We came into the game with a lot of confidence and had played six good quarters in a row, and a seventh tonight, but they’re 16-0 for a reason,” said Noszka. “They don’t have overwhelming size, but it’s evident they have a lot of kids that play basketball all 12 months of the year.
“Their skill levels are really good. They play very hard, and tonight we needed our defense to step up, especially in that second quarter when we were struggling offensively, but we gave up 18 points and that hurt us.
“We looked really good and won the first quarter but unfortunately for us they won the next three, and that’s why they’re really good right now,” Noszka continued. “When you’re struggling to score, your defense needs to pick you up but that didn’t happen tonight. We’ll try to figure it out before our next one. Our kids are still playing hard, so it’s not a lack of effort.”
Friend led Fairfield and was the game’s leading scorer with 19 points, followed by Miller and McIntosh, who both hit double digits with 13 and 10 points, respectively. Rounding out the scoring for the Lions were Trey House (six), Gabe Fouch (three) and Janre Lerio (two). 3-point field goals for Fairfield: Miller three, Friend one, House one and Fouch one. The Lions shot just six foul shots but made five for 83 percent.
McClain was led in scoring by Weller, who was the Tigers’ only double-figure scorer with 10 points, followed by Potts with nine, Sykes (six) and Noszka with five. Noszka had the only 3-pointer for the Tigers. McClain also had very few foul shot attempts, making 6-of-8 free throws for 75 percent.
Fairfield’s next game is at home when they host North Adams in an important league matchup, and McClain will be back at home Friday night when they battle Frontier Athletic Conference rival Washington.