By Rob Potter
LOCH SHELDRAKE — February 17, 2006 – Despite holding a 51-44 lead at halftime of Tuesday night’s Region XV men’s basketball game at Paul Gerry Fieldhouse, the Sullivan County Community College Generals received a spirited pep talk from Coach Chris DePew.
“I challenged them to play better in the second half, especially on defense,” DePew said of his intermission advice to his players.
The Generals took their coach’s words to heart and responded with a 14-5 scoring run in the opening four minutes of the second half to extend their advantage to 65-49.
SCCC (19-5, 12-2 Region XV) gradually expanded that lead as the game progressed.
At the final buzzer, the Generals posted a 107-72 victory over the Hawks.
“I’m very happy with our second-half effort tonight,” DePew said. “The first half was good; we scored 51 points. But we gave up 44 points.
“Overall, I’m pleased with how we played, but we can get better,” he added.
Four Generals scored in double figures to lead the team to victory. Freshman forward Jason Johnson led the way with a game-high 22 points. Josh Lott and Roberto Macklin each netted 15 points, Michael Hines had 14 points and Kevin Johnson added nine points.
DePew praised Macklin for the times he soared to the hoop, caught a perfect pass from either Lott or Johnson and dunked the ball. The veteran coach noted that “it was ESPN stuff.”
Rockland CC (5-20, 4-10 Region XV) was paced by Stanley Lamb, who recorded 21 points. Mike Dodd and Fritz Millien added 14 points apiece for the Hawks.
“We stayed right with them in the first half, but they are a very deep team,” Rockland CC Coach Bill Kurisko said. “Sullivan is 12 or 13 players deep and we go only five or six deep.”
Kurisko said that the Generals “are a very good team.”
“I think they are the best team in the region,” he commented.
Notes: DePew said that the Generals would need to bring “their ‘A’ game” into last night’s scheduled contest against Monroe College at Paul Gerry Fieldhouse. He noted that Monroe is a National Junior Collegiate Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division I school that offers athletic scholarships.
Tomorrow afternoon, SCCC will return to the Fieldhouse court. The Generals are slated to host Kingsborough Community College at 3 p.m. in a Region XV game.