SARANAC LAKE – The Fulton-Montgomery and North Country men's basketball teams played the second of their home-and-home contests on the Saints' court on Wednesday evening. Four weeks ago FM defeated the Saints 78-65 in the Raiders Den, but on Wednesday it was the Saints' turn to shine. The North Country Five won the game 86-77.
Both teams took a while to get their offenses in gear. Carlos Rivera had a good scoring run to keep FM even with their hosts. Rivera's drive to the hoop, his three-pointer from the corner, and his jumper for two complemented tallies by Kenny Barr, Kadeem Stanislas, and Tyrone Davis, making the score 12-12 after seven minutes.
Photo: Carlos Rivera drives for two
FM took the lead at 16-14 on a spinning jumper by Dondre Davis. But the Saints quickly regained the lead. North Country led 29-24, but Stanislas drove for two, Khaleeq Baum got a nice pass from Barr and scored, and Daren Mercedes fed Kyle Giddings who scored and put FM back in front 30-29. Giddings made a major contribution to that run. He scored four field goals during FM's run from 16 to 30 points.
Photo: Kyle Giddings scoring two of his eight first-half points
The Raiders seemed to be playing on even terms with North Country, but the Saints managed to lead 39-36 at the break. Then the Saints found their scoring touch as the second half began. Soon FM trailed by 10, at 48-38.
Most of the second half was played at full speed. The Saints did a very good job of controlling the defensive boards. And they were hitting from beyond the arc. North Country had scored four three-pointers in the first half. They drained six in the second half, giving them 30 points in all from three-point range. FM, meanwhile, connected on just three treys during the game.
North Country continued to build on their lead. The Raiders gave a good effort. Stanislas' steal-and-score, and Marquis Edwards' steal and 60' dash for two were inspiring plays, but FM could not equal the Saints' point production. The final score was 86-77.
Photo: Kenny Barr shooting
The Raiders have just one home game remaining this season. They will host Clinton CC this Saturday, February 15th, in a 3:00 p.m. contest. They will finish the season on the road with games at Hudson Valley and Columbia-Greene.
C.J. Bonny, website writer
Scoring:
FM: Barr 8, Simmons 6, Rivera 9, Edwards 4, Stanislas 22, Stewart 2, T. Davis 2, D. Davis 4, Baum 10, Giddings 10; Total 77
North Country: Boyea 18, Barnes 5, Trentsch 16, Gric 5, Gullotta 5, Gibson 11, Dun 10, Cretanovic 14, Cirel 2; Total 86
