Chaminade beats Holy Trinity in non-league boys basketball at UBS Arena
Energy and effort are what Peter Tagios brings to Chaminade and those qualities are invaluable for the Flyers.
Tagios had a double-double, 12 points and 14 rebounds as Chaminade defeated Holy Trinity, 57-53, in overtime of a CHSAA basketball matchup at the LuHi Holiday Invitational at UBS Arena on Friday night.
“We wanted this to be more about us and we talked about that throughout the week,” junior guard Kyle Dillon said. “Playing in this event is cool, but getting the win was the most important thing here for us.”
Tagios made the defensive play of the game, stealing a pass with Chaminade up three and just seven seconds remaining in overtime. The junior forward stepped to the line and knocked down 1 of 2 free throws to put Chaminade ahead 57-53.
Baron Pinsky made a three-pointer earlier in the overtime to tie it at 53. Tagios was able to draw contact at the other end and make one free throw, followed by Dillon sinking two free throws to give the Flyers a 56-53 lead.
“This team was down in regulation in the state championship last year, down in overtime,” Chaminade coach Dan Feeney said. “They still walked away with a state CHSAA championship, so they understand how to win.”
Dillon finished with 17 points, Michael Wede and Ricky Gunther each had 12 for the Flyers. Tristan Thomas had 18 points, Pinsky had 13, and Manny Ayeye and Jagger Verzosa each had six for Holy Trinity.
Chaminade jumped to an 8-3 lead after back-to-back baskets by Tagios in the first quarter. Holy Trinity grabbed its first lead when Ryan Reid found Pinsky for a three-pointer, putting the Titans ahead 13-11.
Ayeye scored the first basket of the second quarter, extending the Titans lead to 20-16. Back-to-back baskets from Dillon put Chaminade ahead 24-22. The Flyers closed out the quarter on a 6-0 run, including a deep three-pointer by Wede, to take a 32-27 lead into the half.
Holy Trinity tightened its defense in the third quarter, allowing just five points. The Titans cut the lead to 37-34 after a layup by Thomas, but both teams failed to score for the final three minutes of the quarter.
“I think in the first half we were letting the play before affect the next one,” Tagios said. “In the second half we dug in on defense and bringing up the intensity was a big reason why.”
Holy Trinity took a 38-37 lead early in the fourth after baskets from Thomas and Jaden Shields. Thomas scored 10 points in the third quarter, including a putback on an offensive rebound to put the Titans ahead 47-43 with under two minutes remaining.
Tagios made a layup and Dillon connected on a three-pointer to put Chaminade ahead 48-47 with under a minute left in regulation. Thomas drove to the basket and drew contact with 19 seconds remaining, making one free throw to tie it at 48 and send the game to overtime.
“We preached physicality all week at practice,” Dillon said. “We executed that physicality at practice and that helped us get clutch stops.”
Chaminade (1-2) dominated on the boards, outrebounding Holy Trinity, 40-24. The Flyers have defeated the Titans (3-2) in six of the last eight matchups.
“Trinity is known for being a tough team and we had to match that,” Tagios said. “I’m one of the bigger kids on this team, but everyone is trying to push me in practice and that gets us ready for the game.
“Pete learned how to be tough from last year’s players,” Feeney said. “His toughness has stood out and I think that’s probably the reason we won this game today.”
Christopher Matias covers high school sports for Newsday after spending time in Athletic Facilities and Operation at St. John’s and in Sports Information at CUNY York college.
