GUILDERLAND — It wasn’t the prettiest basketball game of the year for the Guilderland Dutchmen, but they will take the result.

The Dutchmen pulled away late in Tuesday night’s contest to beat Shaker, 57-47, and remain unbeaten in the Suburban Council.
"At the end, we made some big baskets," said Guilderland Coach Ron Osinski. "They didn’t shoot the ball well later. I credit them. They had a good game plan and they played us tough. I tell the kids what to expect from the league. We have a target on our back...Everybody wants to be where we are at, at this point."

Guilderland led by five points, 40-35, at the end of three closely played, physical quarters.

Shaker was able to whittle the lead down to one point, 42-41, but Guilderland’s Dan Gejay hit a big jump shot that gave the Dutch some breathing room.

Then the Dutch were able to get their transition game going.

Chris Mannarino grabbed a rebound and passed the ball down the court to Jon Terry who scored on an easy lay-up.

Shaker missed its next shot and Brett Marfurt grabbed the rebound. He passed the ball to a streaking Andrew Smith, who converted on the fast break and the Dutch had built the lead up to seven points, 48-41.

Shaker’s Billy Yuzynko made a jump shot but Marfurt answered with a drive to the basket and was fouled. Marfurt converted the foul shot for the three-point play.

Gejay scored on a drive to the basket to put the Dutch up, 53-43, with 1:09 left in the game.

A lay-up by Terry and two free throws by Marfurt rounded out the scoring by the Dutch and sealed the 10-point win.

Out-hustled"

It was a nice finish for the Dutch who were not the dominating team they have showed they can be for most of the season.
"I thought they out-hustled us," Osinski said. "We chased guys [on defense] when we should have just backed off. We didn’t follow the game plan. But we got the key rebounds and hustled enough."

The Dutch led, 18-12, at the end of the first quarter, but only led by one point at halftime as they got sloppy with the ball and scored just six points in the frame.
"At the end of the first half, we rebounded the ball then we passed it right to the guy," Osinski said. "And then Kevin [Kost] shoots the ball when we should have held it. But we’re not in that spot much. We miss the shot, they get the rebound and hit a shot. Then they’re down one and it should’ve been 24-19."

Marfurt led the Dutchmen with 20 points. Terry scored 14 points and Smith added 13 points.

Ryan Sullivan led Shaker with 10 points.

Osinski said he noticed his team wasn’t playing with the usual juice it has for most games.
"It was how we came out tonight," the coach said. "I thought they would be charged up. We finally have a home game. But the crowd was quiet. The kids would like to see people come to the gym. It charges them up a bit. The students should be here. It’s not often they have a team like this."

"Still in the game"

The Dutchmen are now 9-0 in the Suburban Council with five more league games to go. Guilderland has an overall record of 11-2 this season.

The Dutch will play five more games, three of them on the road. They just played a long stretch of games on the road.
"We had a tough road trip," Osinski said. "We played five games, including the holiday tournament. We had two long Friday trips including Saratoga. We handled that, even though we were down at the half. And at Averill Park, we were down at halftime. We played well for three quarters. We were down 12-2 early.
"We battled back and cut it to four by halftime," Osinski added. "Teams are playing their best basketball and we’re still in the game."

The Dutch lost just one game on their road trip — to Christian Brothers Academy at Columbia’s holiday tournament. The Dutchmen bounced back to beat Queensbury, Saratoga, Bethlehem, and Averill Park.

The Dutch play at Ballston Spa on Friday then get a week off due to Regents exams. They play on Friday, Jan. 25, at home against Burnt Hills. Guilderland finishes the season with away games at Shenendehowa and Columbia and a home contest against Bethlehem.
"We control our own destiny," Osinski said. "If we let our guard down, someone will get us. Three of our last five games are on the road. The kids said they like playing on the road."