Glens Falls Chronicle Serving the Glens Falls/Lake George region; Warren, Washington and northern Saratoga counties since 1980
By Ben Westcott, Chronicle Staff Writer
“In my eyes it’s got to be probably the best team ever to come out of Glens Falls,” Head Boys Basketball Coach Rob Girard said after his squad won its second straight state championship Sunday afternoon, completing consecutive undefeated seasons and extending its win streak to 54 games.
That’s saying a lot for a program that’s featured such distinguished hoops alums as Jimmer Fredette and Joe Girard III, each of whom became college basketball stars and went pro.
“I’m not saying that loosely,” said Coach Girard, who just finished his 10th season at the helm.
“We have a great team here. We have a great group, a really special group.”
When the final buzzer sounded Sunday in Binghamton, Glens Falls had beaten Mount Sinai 77-57, a margin that mirrored the Black Bears’ 75-55 semifinal win over Wayne the day before.
After the game, Tournament MVP Kellen Driscoll recalled how from a young age he and Brody Holcomb got inspiration from a Glens Falls basketball legend.
“Me and Brody watched Joe [Girard III] and that team win their state championship and we wanted to do that,” Driscoll said. “So we’re glad we did.”
Brody Holcomb said, “It was our last game together with a bunch of kids that grew up playing basketball with each other, so there’s no better feeling than to go out on top.”
Holcomb added, “Every time we were on the court, you could tell we had a bond. We know where each other is going to be at the right time. We just played for each other. That’s one of our big things. It’s ‘we’ over ‘me’ when we step on the court.”
Driscoll echoed that sentiment.
“It’s a great group of guys,” he said. “No one really cares about individual accolades or anything like that. Everyone just really wanted to win. We’re a close group of guys. Everyone hangs out off the court as well, and works hard when we play basketball together on the court.”
That work ethic has been a staple of this group for years.
“Every single day we’re in the gym getting better, even in the offseason,” said Holcomb.
“After we lost two years ago to Catholic Central [in the section final], the very next day we were back in the gym getting ready, and it’s just been that way ever since. We don’t like to lose, so we just work hard every single day and have a will to win every time we step on the court.”
Being the defending champions and with the win streak going ever upward, Glens Falls played with a sizable target on its back this season.
“We were very aware that we were going to get teams’ best shot every time we played them, and we knew that we just had to play our best game every time we stepped on the floor,” Driscoll said.
“Every game that we were in, I thought that we were focused and we were ready,” said Coach Girard. “Not that we played great every game, but the kids were prepared and came ready to play every game.”
“I think our kids just play so much harder than other teams,” Girard added. “I’m not saying that to sound cocky or anything, but they bring it every game.”
Part of the motivation to play hard could come from strong community support, something that Holcomb praised.
“It’s great to have a whole community behind your team,” he said. “Every time you step on the court, you have a big crowd there. It’s great to know you have a big fan base behind you when you’re playing.”
Both the semifinal and final that Glens Falls won in Binghamton were closer than the final scores indicated.
Against Wayne in the semi, Glens Falls led just 34-27 at halftime before stretching its lead in the second half. Oscar Lilac came up big, making seven 3-pointers on his way to 23 points. Driscoll added 22.
Against Mount Sinai in the final, Glens Falls clung to a single-digit lead for most of the first three quarters. They were up just six at the start of the final frame, before going on a 18-2 run to pull away.
Driscoll scored 28 points. Bryce McClenning and Aidan Prunty each added 14. (Prunty is a freshman; all the other starters are seniors.)
“They played us really, really tough,” Girard said of Mount Sinai. “That team was good. They were scrappy — they’re a lot like us. They got down 6, 8, 10, and then they’d come back.”
“Offensively, I thought we played really well,” the coach said. “We got what we wanted. But we didn’t make a whole lot of shots. That’s not normal for us.”
“But then we had other guys step up. That’s what it’s been all year, is somebody else stepping up. Yesterday it was Bryce. Of course Kellen is our guy that we count on every game to be there, and he was there again yesterday.”
Apart from some slight roster variations, the biggest thing that felt different for Glens Falls in the state championships this year was the change in venue, going from the hometown court at the Cool Insuring Arena last year to playing at Visions Veterans Memorial Arena in Binghamton this time around.
Comparing the two championship experiences, Driscoll said, “I loved the first one because being at home at the Civic Center was super cool, but I think the second one felt a little more satisfying and complete.”
Holcomb said, “The first one was special, but it doesn’t take away from that second one. To go 54-0, back to back, is a very special feeling for our team and everybody that was a part of it.”
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