Furey-Bastian carries Unionville past Henderson

EAST MARLBOROUGH >> Two boys basketball teams desperate for a win after opening the season with two losses squared off Tuesday night. Host Unionville and visiting West Chester Henderson went at each other with passion, energy and determination for the entire 32 minutes, looking less like two winless teams and more like two teams that will compete for post season play.

Unionville almost let a 10-point lead after three periods slip away, but the Indians got some clutch foul shooting from Andrew Burich and a sparkling 24-point performance from impressive sophomore Bo Furey-Bastian as the hosts held on for a hard-fought 53-48 win in a nonleague tilt. Burich went nine for 10 from the foul line and the Indians shot 17 of 22 from the stripe for the game. Unionville hit 13 free throws in the fourth period to seal the victory.

“We almost let this lead slip away like we did Saturday night,” said Unionville coach Joe Kilpatrick. “We were up 10 after three periods and we had Henderson (0-3) in foul trouble and I told the kids to bury them at the line but we let them back in the game. But, getting the first win of the season is always the toughest to get so we hope to have this win get us going.”

Unionville held a 43-33 lead after three periods, outscoring the Warriors, 20-11, in the third stanza and shooting six of 12 in the period. The Indians were helped by a technical foul on a substitution error that gave them two free throws and possession of the ball, which resulted in two more Unionville points when Burich hit a runner in the lane.

But the Warriors came roaring back behind the performances of Chuck Smith and Joe Saulino, who led the Warriors with 17 points apiece. A Smith follow cut the Indians’ lead to 43-40 with 4:56 to play, and Henderson forged a 44-43 lead after Smith scored in the lane, got fouled and hit the free throw.

But, Furey-Bastian was too tough on this night. The silky smooth sophomore scored from in tight for a 46-43 Unionville lead with 3:09 to play. After Smith hit one of two free throws to make it a 46-43 game, Unionville turned the ball over. The Indians had 15 turnovers on the night and this one was costly as Adrien Piel scored in the lane to draw Henderson to within one, at 46-45, with 2:32 to play in the fourth period.

“Our defense got us back in the game after being down 10,” said Henderson coach Chris Bruno. “And we played a lot looser than we did last year. We are a young team and give Unionville credit. They can really shoot the basketball. So hat’s off to them. They deserved to win the game.”

It was then that the Indians (1-2) did their magic at the free throw line. Burich buried four in a row from the charity stripe and Brendan Barrett hit two free throws with 23 seconds left to play to make it a 53-48 Unionville advantage. Unionville had only one field goal from the floor in the fourth period, but won the game at the foul line hitting 13 free throws on 15 attempts.

Henderson shot just five for 15 in the fourth period, and that was the undoing of the Warrior attack. Furey-Bastian sank four 3-pointers on the night, helping him to a game-high 24 points.

“Their transition game was really tough tonight,” said Furey-Bastian. “Their defense caused some turnovers and then No. 3 (Smith), got out running and they attacked the basket. But, Andrew and Brendan hit some big free throws and we held on for the win. We let one slip away the other night and we did not want that to happen again tonight. This was a real good win tonight.”

Unionville 53, W.C. Henderson 48
W.C. Henderson            10 12 11 1 5-48
Unionville            10 13 20 10-53
W.C. HENDERSON: Smith 5 7-9 17, Joe Saulino 7 1-2 17, Piel 2 0-2 5, Preston 1 1-1 3, Rymiszewski 2 0-0 4, Coles 1 0-0 2, Jack Saulino 0 0-0 0, Blackwell 0 0-0 0, Gawrlowicz 0 0-0 0, Nichols 0 0-0 0, Bash 0 0-0 0. Totals 18 9-14 48.
UNIONVILLE: Furey-Bastian 9 2-2 24, Burich 2 9-10 13, Barrett 0 2-2 2, Hockenberry 1 1-3 4, Martelli 1 0-1 2, Rafferty 1 1-2 3, Zubillaga 0 0-0 0, Miller 1 2-25. Totlas 15 17-22 53.
3-point goals: Joe Saulino 2, Piel, Hockenberry, Miller, Furey-Bastian 4.