Riverhead boys basketball hold heads high after quarterfinal loss

The Riverhead Blue Waves boys basketball team lost in the Suffolk County Class AAA quarterfinals against No. 2 Bay Shore on Thursday, 71-49. The final score however didn’t tell the whole story. 

Bay Shore was 19-1 this year — the defending Long Island champions. They made it all the way to the state finals, while the Blue Waves had just three wins all of last year. 

Riverhead fought. They were without their leading scorer in Deshawn Watkins but that didn’t matter. The Blue Waves showed heart and given the urgency of their opponent’s timeouts, they definitely worried the Bay Shore coaches during the game.

With two minutes remaining in the third quarter, junior guard Peter Lagnena hit two consecutive threes — one from so far behind the three-point line it could have come from another planet — and it electrified the Riverhead crowd at Bay Shore High School. It cut the lead to six, and after a Landon Zaleski free throw, the lead was only five. 

“I really felt that was a game changer for us,” Riverhead head coach Pat Fabian said. “I think it really sparked a belief in our guys that we can hang with a team like this.”

Sophomore point guard Anaiis Mitchell was running on fumes trying to keep pace with the Bay Shore offense, a classic run-and-gun type team. He registered 13 assists in the game and never came off the court. Depth was an issue for the Blue Waves all season And without Watkins, that made things even tougher.

Fabian used just a six-man rotation against Bay Shore, and everyone on the court was simply exhausted and slowing down. That fatigue really set in during the fourth quarter. Zaleski would hit a triple to close the deficit to six points again, but that’s as close as Riverhead got.

“The guys really left it all out there,” Fabian said. “They gave it everything they had. I’ve never been more proud of a group. I’ve coached for 10 years, and today was my proudest moment.”

Bay Shore got into their typical fast break offense after coming away with turnovers by pressing and trapping the Blue Waves. Riverhead just didn’t have the experience nor the energy to stop the bleeding. At one point in the game, there were three sophomores and two juniors on the court at the same time. Bay Shore posted an 18-5 fourth quarter to run away and advance to the semifinals.

Lagnena and Zaleski both scored 16 points for the Blue Waves. Liam Lennon, the lone senior in the starting lineup, scored nine and Mitchell added eight.

Nobody pegged Riverhead (8-4 League I, 12-10 overall) as a playoff team this year. Three players who were expected to be part of the varsity team this year left the area. There was also a first time head coach in Fabian, who was the assistant last year. But the Blue Waves exceeded those early expectations and even took it a step further by winning the first round game against No. 10 Commack.

There were a lot of unknowns going into this season. This year was supposed to be a rebuilding year by all intents and purposes. But the players in the gym felt otherwise. 

“We knew we were going to need to bring up younger guys from JV,” Fabian said. “They were going to be a part of the team anyway but not to this extent and to have roles this large. Our young guys had to grow up fast this season and this year’s experience only helps us going into next year.”

Nobody on this roster had ever tasted the varsity playoffs before. This was all new for everyone. But it’s really encouraging to return most of the squad next year. Zaleski, Mitchell and Jack Bartolo are all sophomores. Lagnena and Sentrell Hires are juniors. Yes, they lose Lennon and Watkins — a major part of the success this season — but the majority returns next year.

“Before the season I said that our success wouldn’t be dictated by wins and losses,” Fabian said. “But after this year’s run, we need to reshape our expectations. We know we belong with the best in Suffolk County. And we’re going to work like hell this offseason to make sure our expectations get met.”