Camden-Frontier at Pittsford – – Boys Basketball – – The Bleacher Denizen – – January 19, 2023 – – by Chuck Krafft

Tonight, your Bleacher Denizen is off to Pittsford to watch the Wildcats as they take on the Redskins from Camden-Frontier. (Partially because of laziness and partially to save wear and tear on the aging Bleacher Denizen’s aging fingers, we will frequently call Camden-Frontier “C-F” in the article.

As I usually put a couple links to videos from my You Tube Channel, tonight, I will feature trumpeter extraordinaire John Rickert, who has had big roles in two of my videos and will hopefully appear in some more of them. Here, John and I do an instrumental jam of “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy”! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1MxOus8t44

I was able to make the drive from Lansing to Pittsford with very little trouble other than a drizzly rain. Unfortunately, I was too sluggish getting out of the house, so I missed a chance to fill up at the gas station in Pittsford. This is the only full serve gas station I know of and it is always nice to stop by and have them fill the tank.

I got to the gym in time to see the JV game. Pittsford got off to an 11-2 lead after one quarter and extended it to 23-6 at halftime. Pittsford controlled the game the rest of the way and won by a final score of 48-19.

Luis Castro-Thilo led the C-F JVs with 7 points. Dylan Drake scored 4 points. Darran Drake, Brayden Bever, Aiden Leach and Kenton Clark each tallied 2 points.

Alex Tice led the victorious Pittsford JV with 16 points. Jacob Drawe joined his teammate in double figures with 12 points and Anthony Governo added 9 points. Brayden Highland and Mondale Mason each tacked on 4 points. Joe Ellsworth had 2 points and Teagan Williams had 1 point.

C-F Coach Brian Morrison provided me with this information about his players. Wade Brown slashes to the basket well. Rodney Weir defends and scores well in the post. Ethan Wickham plays well in the post; he also excels in the transition game with his speed. Kaiden Conroy runs the point; he is a fine passer, perimeter defender and three point shooter. Beau Groves is a fine shooter who can hit the three point or the mid-range shot.

Ben Salyer is a fine rebounder. Brayden Miller and Chance Cuff are strong post defenders and good rebounders. Dawson Shaw is a fine leaper. Isiaha Titus does the unsung things which every team needs like screening, working hard in practice and defense.

Pittsford Coach Mike Burger provided me with this information about his Wildcat team. I’d first like to note that there are fourteen guys on the varsity roster (as well as eleven on the JV roster). With so many schools struggling to field full teams, it’s really refreshing to see this many people still wanting to play basketball. (Actually, Camden-Frontier has pretty good participation too; there are ten players on its varsity roster and eleven on the JVs.)

Bryce Williams runs the point for the Wildcats. He is a good passer, ball handler and perimeter defender. Gavyn Carden is very athletic and a threat to score from the three point line or inside. Kade Spahr is an excellent all-around player who provides strong defense, leadership and an accurate shot from three point range or closer to the basket.

Legend Gore is excellent scoring points at the rim. Patrick VanDusen is a big guy who is powerful in the paint but also has a fine shot from mid-range or the three point line. Lane Lewis and Gage Gore provide toughness and strong rebounding. Mason Payne is a good three point shooter.

It is now time to review the results of this game through the somewhat open eyes of a maturing Bleacher Denizen who was never able to escape church league in the days of yore when he attempted to play basketball. By the time he realized that it was only easy to shoot at the wrong basket because the defense won’t defend against that, it was too late and basketball passed him by.

The Pittsford Pep Band plays the national anthem and does a nice job.

Pittsford wins the opening tap. Kade Spahr passes to Patrick VanDusen, who throws in a threeball from the top of the key to give Pittsford the first three points of the game. C-F misses a layup. Pittsford misfires on a three pointer from the side. C-F misses a six foot turnaround jumper in the lane. Kaiden Conroy steals the ball for C-F. The Redskins are cited for carrying the ball. Bryce Williams passes to Gavyn Carden, who hits a three point shot from the top of the key to boost Pittsford to a 6-0 lead.

Patrick VanDusen knocks the ball away from C-F, but the Redskins are able to recover. C-F misses a jump shot from the side. Pittsford misses a layup. C-F misses a jumper from the free throw elbow. Patrick VanDusen hits a layup for Pittsford. C-F misses a layup. Beau Groves snags the offensive rebound for the Redskins. C-F is fouled on a fourteen foot shot in the lane, but misses two free throws. With 4:18 remaining in quarter number one, Pittsford has an 8-0 lead.

Wade Brown knocks a Pittsford pass into the lane out of bounds; the Wildcats retain possession. Pittsford misses a threeball from the side. Lane Lewis blocks a C-F layup. Pittsford travels with the ball. (Basketball cliches can be interesting. I don’t imagine that traveling without the ball would be all that newsworthy.) Kaiden Conroy ignores the Bleacher Denizen’s semantic musing and hits a three point shot to trim the Wildcat lead to 8-3.

Pittsford misfires on a threeball from the wing. Gavyn Carden steals the ball and hits a fast break layup for Pittsford. C-F misses a jumper from the free throw line. Gavyn Carden hits a fast break layup for Pittsford. Rodney Weir passes to Dawson Shaw, who hits a layup for C-F to trim the Pittsford lead to 12-5.

Bryce Williams passes to Gavyn Carden, who throws in a threeball from the wing for Pittsford. Rodney Weir passes to Ethan Wickham, who banks in a threeball from near the top of the key for C-F. Pittsford misses a three point shot from the top of the key. Patrick VanDusen is fouled on a putback and hits one of his two free throws to give Pittsford a 16-8 lead with 37.8 seconds to play in the quarter.

The Wildcats pull down the offensive rebound (and your aging Bleacher Denizen was too slow in his note taking to properly credit the guy who got the rebound). Kade Spahr passes to Patrick VanDusen, who hits a fifteen foot shot from the wing for Pittsford. Wade Brown drives and dishes the ball to Brayden Miller, who is fouled on a layup. A technical foul is also called on the play.

Brayden Miller hits one of his two free throws. Wade Brown shoots the technical free throws and hits both of them. There are just 14.8 seconds left in the quarter at this point. C-F misses a three pointer from the wing at the buzzer.

After one quarter, Pittsford has an 18-11 lead.

C-F has the ball to open quarter number two. The Redskins miss an eight foot shot from the baseline. Pittsford misses a three point shot from the corner. Patrick VanDusen hauls down the offensive rebound for the Wildcats. Gavyn Carden takes a bit of time off from scoring (He had ten in the first quarter.) and passes to Patrick VanDusen, who hits a fifteen foot shot from the side to give the Wildcats a 20-11 lead.

Pittsford’s press forces a C-F traveling violation. Pittsford misses a threeball from the corner. Legend Gore nearly steals the ball for Pittsford, but it goes out of bounds and C-F gets another opportunity. Kade Spahr steals the ball for the Wildcats. Wade Brown gets back quickly on defense and causes Pittsford to miss a fast break layup. The rebound goes out of bounds and C-F takes possession. Kaiden Conroy slings in a threeball from the wing to trim the Wildcat lead to 20-14.

Wade Brown gets his hand on the ball and a Pittsford driver loses the ball out of bounds; C-F gets the ball. Dawson Shaw alertly prevents a loose ball from becoming a C-F turnover, but only temporarily as the Redskins finally do turn it over. Bryce Williams passes to Kade Spahr, who hits a sixteen foot shot from the wing for Pittsford. C-F misses a three pointer from the corner. Bryce Williams passes to Gavyn Carden, who hits another three point shot – – from the corner this time – – to boost the Wildcats to a 25-14 lead.

C-F misses a driving layup. Wade Brown gets the offensive rebound for the Redskins. C-F misses a three pointer from the top of the key. Ethan Wickham gets the offensive rebound for the Redskins. Beau Groves hits a layup for C-F. Gavyn Carden hits yet another three point shot (from the side) for Pittsford. C-F misses a three point attempt from the top of the key. Ethan Wickham is fouled on a putback and hits one of his two free throws. With 3:43 to play in the first half, Pittsford has a 28-17 lead.

Pittsford misses a three point shot from the wing. Kade Spahr gets the offensive rebound for the Wildcats. Gavyn Carden hits a threeball from the side for Pittsford. (If he keeps this up, I may need to create a macro for him hitting three point shots. This is his fifth made three point shot of the half!) Gage Gore steals the ball, but steps on the sideline, so C-F gets it back. C-F misses a six foot banked runner. Ethan Wickham is fouled oj a putback and hits one of his two shots to trim the Pittsford lead to 31-18 with 2:49 to go in the half.

Kade Spahr passes to Lane Lewis, who is fouled on a hook shot in the lane and hits one of his two free throws for Pittsford. C-F loses a pass out of bounds. Pittsford misses an eighteen foot shot near the top of the key. C-F misses a twelve foot shot in the lane. Dawson Shaw gets the offensive rebound for the Redskins. C-F turns the ball over. Pittsford misses a twelve foot shot from the side. Patrick VanDusen pulls down the offensive rebound for the Wildcats. A few seconds later, Patrick VanDusen hits a three point shot from the side to boost Pittsford to a 35-18 lead.

C-F misses a three point shot from the wing. Ethan Wickham gets the offensive rebound for the Redskins. C-F misses a three pointer from the top of the key. Brayden Miller gets the offensive rebound for C-F. C-F misses a jump shot. Bryce Williams is fouled on a driving layup and hits one of hits two free throws for Pittsford with 3.0 seconds remaining in the half. The rebound goes out of bounds and Pittsford gets another possession. The Wildcats miss a three pointer from the corner as the buzzer blares.

Pittsford has a 36-18 lead at halftime.

Kaiden Conroy leads the C-F scoring at halftime with 6 points and Ethan Wickham has 5 points.

Gavyn Carden has five successful three pointers and 19 points for Pittsford. Patrick VanDusen has 13 points.

Let’s take a couple minutes to listen to “The Lonely Bull” again featuring John Rickert, as we wait for the second half to be played. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lmJmDiyf3ps

Pittsford has the ball to start out the third quarter. Legend Gore passes to Patrick VanDusen, who hits a layup for the Wildcats. C-F turns the ball over. Kade Spahr drives and hits a layup for the Wildcats. Bryce Williams steals the ball and passes to Gavyn Carden, who hits a fast break layup to give the Wildcats a 42-18 lead.

C-F misses a layup. Pittsford misses a three point shot from the side. C-F misses a six foot shot from the side. Pittsford loses the ball out of bounds. C-F misses a twelve foot shot from the side. Gavyn Carden hits a fast break layup for Pittsford. Bryce Williams steals the ball for the Wildcats. Pittsford misses a fifteen foot shot from the side. C-F misses an eight foot shot from the baseline. Dawson Shaw gets the offensive rebound for the Redskins. Dawson Shaw is fouled on a driving layup and hits one of his two free throws to trim the Pittsford lead to 44-19 with 4:15 to go in the third quarter.

Pittsford misses a six foot banked hook shot. Gage Gore knocks the ball away from C-F and Mason Payne picks it up for Pittsford. Pittsford misses a threeball from the wing. Wade Brown passes to Rodney Weir, who is fouled on a layup and hits one of his two free throws for C-F. With 3:12 remaining in the third quarter, the Pittsford lead is at 44-20.

Pittsford loses a pass out of bounds. C-F misses a three point attempt near the top of the key. The rebound goes out of bounds and Pittsford takes possession. Pittsford misses a three point shot from the top of the key. Bryce Williams gets the offensive rebound for the Wildcats. Pittsford is whistled for a traveling violation. Dawson Shaw drives and hits a layup for C-F. Pittsford is fouled on a driving layup, but misses both its free throws. With 1:20 to go in the third quarter, Pittsford’s lead remains at 44-22.

Gage Gore steals a C-F pass. Rodney Weir knocks a Pittsford pass out of bounds; the Wildcats retain possession. Rodney Weir blocks a Wildcat layup. C-F misses a ten foot shot from the side. Ethan Wickham gets the offensive rebound for the Redskins. C-F misses a layup. Pittsford misses a three point shot from the top of the key. Kaiden Conroy passes to Wade Brown, who hits a three point shot from the corner at the buzzer for C-F.

After three quarters, Pittsford has a 44-25 lead.

C-F inbounds the ball to get quarter number for underway. Bryce Williams knocks the ball out of bounds; C-F retains possession. Wade Brown hits a one-handed runner from the free throw elbow for C-F. Gavyn Carden hits his sixth three point shot of the game for Pittsford. (This one was from the top of the key.) Pittsford has a 47-27 lead.

Legend Gore blocks a C-F layup; the loose ball goes out of bounds and Pittsford takes possession. Kade Spahr passes to Patrick VanDusen, who makes a one dribble drive and hits a layup for the Wildcats. C-F misses a fourteen footer in the lane; the rebound goes out of bounds and the Redskins get another opportunity. Beau Groves passes to Kaiden Conroy, who hits a three point shot from the wing to cut the Pittsford lead to 49-30.

Pittsford misses a sixteen foot shot from the baseline and fouls on the rebound. C-F misses a running hook shot. Pittsford misses a fast break layup. Legend Gore hits a putback for the Wildcats. Kade Spahr steals the ball for Pittsford. Legend Gore drives the baseline and hits an up and under layup for Pittsford. C-F misses a fifteen foot shot from the side. Beau Groves gets the offensive rebound for the Redskins. Wade Brown passes to Kaiden Conroy, who hits a three point shot from the top of the key for C-F. Lane Lewis passes to Brady Hartman, who hits a layup for the Wildcats. He is fouled on the play, but misses his free throw. With 4:20 remaining in the game, Pittsford has a 55-33 lead.

C-F misses a fifteen foot shot from the baseline. Kaiden Conroy knocks the offensive rebound to Wade Brown. Beau Groves takes a jumper off the dribble for C-F and is fouled. He hits two free throws. This is the final scoring of the game. With 3:44 to play in the game, Pittsford has a 55-35 lead.

Pittsford loses a pass out of bounds. C-F turns the ball over. Pittsford misses a three point hot from the wing. C-F turns the ball over. Darran Drake knocks a Pittsford pass out of bounds; the Wildcats retain possession. Pittsford turns the ball over. Ryan Evener knocks the ball out of bounds; C-F retains possession. Ryan Evener steals the ball for Pittsford. Pittsford is called for traveling. C-F misses a layup.

Brayden Miller knocks the Pittsford inbound pass out of bounds off a Wildcat player and C-F takes possession. C-F misses a fifteen foot shot from the side. Brayden Miller pulls down the offensive rebound for the Redskins. C-F misses a layup. Pittsford misses a three point shot from the side. Eli LaBo gets the offensive rebound for the Wildcats. Pittsford is fouled on a layup with 1:03 left, but misses two free throws.

C-F misses a ten foot shot from the side. The rebound goes out of bounds and the Redskins get the ball back. C-F misses a layup. The rebound goes out of bounds and Pittsford takes possession. Rodney Weir knocks a Wildcat pass out of bounds to prevent a layup. Pittsford commits an over and back violation. Dyrk Hensley blocks a C-F layup. Pittsford runs out the clock.

Pittsford wins this game 55-35.

Kaiden Conroy hit four three point shots and led Camden-Frontier with 12 points. Wade Brown supported his teammate with 7 points. Ethan Wickham and Dawson Shaw each scored 5 points. Beau Groves tossed in 4 points. Rodney Weir and Brayden Miller each tallied 1 point.

Gavyn Carden hit six treys and led Pittsford with 26 points. Patrick VanDusen also had a big game with 17 points. Legend Gore and Kade Spahr each chipped in with 4 points. Brady Hartman added 2 points. Bryce Williams and Lane Lewis each scored 1 point.