Sport & Medical Sciences Academy Athletics

No matter which Sport and Medical Sciences Academy player was on the court in the first half, he was a genuine scoring threat. "Usually we have two main scorers, but early on we had five go-to guys," coach Milun Mraz said. "This was easily our best game of the season."

The Tigers connected on 65.6 percent (21 of 32) of their shots in the first half. They cooled a bit in the second half to finish at 59.6 percent overall (28 of 47) in a 70-48 victory over Suffield in a contest of undefeated NCCC teams Tuesday night.

Jonathan Hernandez led SMSA (9-0), No. 8 in The Courant area ratings, with 24 points. Ryan Rivera scored 20 and Daquan Carr 11. Hernandez (11 of 18) and Rivera (7 of 10) combined to shoot 64.3 percent.

SMSA also shot 5 of 10 on three-point shots, recorded 14 assists and had 10 steals.

Sam Flynn paced Suffield (8-1), No. 9 in The Courant area ratings, with 20 points. Jake Arruda contributed 12.

"Coming in here, we were giving up in the low 50s a game," Suffield coach Dan Gatto said. "SMSA scored 49 — in the first half."

SMSA did trail 13-11 midway through the first quarter. Flynn scored 10 of his team's 20 in the first quarter.

The Tigers' half-court traps weren't that effective. "Suffield is a great passing team and went through us like we were a sieve," Mraz said.

SMSA switched to more full-court man-to-man. This quickened the pace, one that SMSA thrives on, to cause turnovers and rush Suffield shots. The Tigers, who led 24-20 after the first quarter, used three Hernandez drives and Rivera's five points in a 14-6 spurt to move ahead 38-26.

SMSA was a step quicker off the dribble, to the backboards and in passing lanes. It also had more motivation.

"We were 12-0, and they came here last year and beat us [44-41]," said Rivera, a senior guard. "We wanted no repeat of that."

The Tigers expanded their advantage to 49-34 at halftime as Hernandez, a junior guard, scored 18. Thirteen came in the second quarter.

Keith Poitier of SMSA was solid at point guard throughout. He was skilled at directing the offense and making steals and assists. He and Carr were the main ball-handlers in the final 35 seconds of the third quarter. Patience was displayed and then Poitier hit a jumper from the left wing just before the horn to make the score SMSA 64, Suffield 43.

Suffield's defenders had numerous problems containing Hernandez, a skilled, leaping driver. SMSA hurt Suffield from the perimeter, too, as Carr hit three threes in the first half and Rivera had two for the game.

"We couldn't get stops," Gatto said.

Hernandez said SMSA's defense sparked its offense. "Suffield was undefeated in Class M and we're in S," he said. "So it was a big win. Our defense got us going. That's when we play our best."

Gatto said SMSA "is really good. They can shoot it, beat you off the dribble and pressure hard. Lots of credit goes to them for sure."

Yantz, T. (2016, January 19). SMSA Finds Scoring Groove. Retrieved January 27, 2016, from http://www.courant.com/sports/high-schools/hc-hs-suffield-smsa-boys-basketball-0120-20160119-story.html