The Cortland boys basketball team put together a complete team performance Saturday in a 66-43 thumping of Carthage at Cortland Jr./Sr. High School. Cortland got contributions across the board, with 12 players seeing action and 11 scoring in the win.
The Purple Tigers were powered by a suffocating defensive effort, holding Carthage to three made field goals in the first half. Cortland head coach Jeremy Milligan knows the defensive end is where his team is going to win games this season.
“I think that our defense is our staple,” Milligan said. “We have a ton of great kids that are buying into the whole team defense approach. They’re doing a fantastic job of whatever our scouting reports is, carrying that out and executing on the court. We have a lot of really tough athletes, not just in our starting five but off our bench that contribute and I think we’re starting to build momentum defensively. What we’re trying to do is let that defense turn into quick offense and we saw that (Saturday) off some turnovers. So really proud of the boys for buying in and trusting that team defense approach.”
Jaxson Gambitta believes the returning talent is helping their ability on the defensive end.
“It’s our second year together, so we really know how to defend together as a team and get steals and stops,” Gambitta said.
Cortland raced in front early, opening on an 8-0 run. Zach Muir and Gambitta combined for 10 of the 16 for the Purple Tigers, as they imposed their will in the paint. Eight Cortland players scored in the second quarter to blow the game open. The Purple Tigers finished the half on an 18-5 run and all but put the game to bed before the break.
Cortland’s depth and balance can be attributed to returning nine players from last season, something Cortland thinks can be a major advantage for them.
“It just makes you want to work even harder knowing that you can work as hard as you want and there is someone coming in behind to pick up you at all times,” Muir said.
“The winter season is a long season,” Milligan said. “There is injuries, sickness and with our guys we have some depth for sure. It was great to have a lot of guys rotate in and find some success on the court and it was just a nice Saturday afternoon to allow our guys to build some confidence. Experience at the varsity level is huge and having those guys last year that kind of took some lumps and learned how to compete and had a lot of struggles. We’ve taken some big steps forward and I’m certainly proud of that.”
Owen Johnson finished as Cortland’s leading scorer and rebounder with 11 points and nine boards. Gambitta scored 10 with nine rebounds and Muir had 10 points, two rebounds and three assists. Tyler Thomas (nine points, six rebounds, one assist), Iniko Abani (eight points, three rebounds, one assist), Joel Carr (five points, three rebounds, one assist), Cal Albright (four points, three assists, one rebound), Jamir Bell (three points, three rebounds, one assist), Damauri Bell (two points, four rebounds, one assist), Caden Albright (two points, four assists, one rebound), Logan Toomey (two points, three rebounds, three assists) and Landon Smith (two rebounds) all chipped into the effort. Overall, the Purple Tigers finished with 20 assists as a team.
Milligan hopes Cortland can use the win to continue to build momentum moving forward.
“We don’t take anyone for granted,” Milligan said. “We’ll do our best Monday to have a good game plan for our opponent on Tuesday and again we just take it one day and one game approach to make sure we play within ourselves. Little by little (we’ll) build that momentum with the goal being our best basketball is being played by the time we get to mid-February.”
The Purple Tigers will try for win No. 2 at 6:45 p.m. Tuesday when they host Cincinnatus.
