It was definitely fall football last night with temperatures at some fields in Section 2 dipping into the 40's as the sun fell on Friday evening. 24 teams suited up for 12 games in the Capital Region. There were a number a blowouts, some excitingly close games and some upsets. Something for everyone.
Section 2 Basketball Championship play got underway on Thursday and there was a short slate of games on Friday night.
There were 3 Friday games for the boys side and 5 games on the girls side. Since they have a huge slate of games on Saturday, we will start with girls basketball.
February is an awesome basketball month. High school teams are battling it out with their conference opponents to try to get the best seeding possible for their tournaments, starting in less than a few weeks. On the first day of the month there was 33 games on the schedule for the boys and 18 for girls basketball.
As high school basketball heads into the last weekend of January, coaches, players and fans begin to focus in on who may be in their school's way of a championship. This is the time of year when coaches try to make sure their best players aren't getting too worn down, while winning every game possible. Let's check out the top teams in each division in Section 2.
It was a typical mid-January Friday night in Capital Region high school basketball. Single digit windchills were dropping to negative numbers, road teams kept the buses running. However, that didn't deter some road warriors from dropping the heat on this Friday night in Section 2 hoops. 38 match-ups on the schedule in boys basketball and another 29 on the girls basketball slate.
With some NBA teams playing with playing with abbreviated rosters in limited capacity arenas, Section II high school student-athletes are doing the same thing. Tuesday night was no exception in the Capital Region. There were 27 scheduled match-ups in boys hoops and another 14 for the girls.
Each day, we watch the NBA and NHL shuffle another season of games. Canadian franchises are now playing in front of empty arenas. How will these stoppages effect the high schools and colleges in upstate New York? Will the expected surge of positive COVID 19 test results shut down games to fans or even worse cancel games?
As holiday shoppers were navigating for that perfect parking space, local boys and girls high school hoops teams were on the hardwood courts Tuesday. It is certainly an unsettling time for these young student-athletes, as they observe major league sports pausing games. Many of these high school players remember their older classmates competing in empty gyms, while others didn't play at all. Memories that we'd all like to forget. On Tuesday, it was great opportunity to get out there and enjoy some holiday season hoops.
Tuesday was a typical busy night in high school hoops with 28 games on the boys schedule with an additional 14 in girls basketball. A big thank you to Bethlehem High School athletic director Len Kies and BCHS student Sasha Jo for the awesome photographs. All athletic department contributions are enthusiastically accepted by our 104.5 The Team sports crew!
Fridays are always busy on high school fields and courts, December 10th one was no exceptions. There were 38 basketball games on the Section II schedule for the boys and 32 match ups for the girls. Anyone that wants to submit photos of games, it will be greatly appreciated. You can submit them to charles.voelker@townsquaremedia.com.