Blue Devils Split Back-To-Back Games

Freddie Amato racked up a team high 26 points in Monday’s victory against Smithtown East and 15 points in Tuesday’s loss to North Babylon for the Blue Devils. Photo/Jim Hoops

By Connor Beach
cbeach@longislandergroup.com

The Huntington Blue Devils basketball team split a pair of back-to-back games Monday and Tuesday nights.

First, on Monday, the Blue Devils earned a 68-59 home victory over the Bulls of Smithtown East.

The Blue Devils struggled on offense in the first quarter, but their defense kept the game close in a low-scoring quarter that ended with Huntington trailing, 16-14.

Huntington’s offense exploded in the second quarter on the back of Freddie Amato, who found space on the floor and developed a rhythm shooting from beyond the arc. He sank a team-high five three-pointers, ultimately finishing the game with 26 points.

The effort, along with continued strong defense, was enough for the Blue Devils played to take a lead over the Bulls, 38-34, come halftime.

The Blue Devils expanded their halftime advantage in the third quarter, limiting the Bulls to just 12 points, while pouring on 19 points of their own. They capped off the 9-point win with more of the same in the fourth.

Chad Rowe added to Huntington’s success from beyond the arc with three three-pointers, finishing the game with 13 points.

Senior Nick Inman continued his strong season for the Blue Devils with 12 points. Mekhi Harvey racked up eight points, and seniors Gerard Federici and Mike Abbondandelo rounded out the scoring with six points and three points, respectively.

Less than 24 hours later, coach Brian Carey and the Blue Devils ventured to North Babylon to face Bulldogs. The quick turnaround was evident for Huntington as North Babylon jumped out to an early and never looked back, claiming a 93-71 win.

But the Blue Devils didn’t go away quietly. Amato, Harvey and Rowe each sunk a pair of three-pointers in the second quarter as Huntington tried to eliminate an early deficit.

Harvey finished the game with a solid 19 points, Amato with 15 and Rowe with eight, but their efforts ultimately weren’t enough.

Also getting on scoresheet were seniors Abbondandelo with 15 points, Inman with six and Federici with three. Travis Robinson scored three points and Ryan Gorecki scored two points to round out the scoring.

Huntington has had a couple of days to regroup and rest ahead of a scheduled 5:45 p.m., Friday home game against Centereach.