Glen Cove wins on senior night

A year removed from losing it’s “Big 4” that propelled this team to a 17-win season, Glen Cove boys’ basketball has found a new offensive spark in Michael Vaughan, who dropped 29 points en route to a 54-36 Big Red senior night victory at home against Plainedge on Feb. 7.

Vaughan, after struggling early and failing to score in the first quarter, was a whirlwind defensively creating turnovers and transition opportunities for both his teammates and himself.

“Vaughan was able to get a couple of steals and get out in transition that led to easy baskets,” head coach Peter Falen said. “You could tell that kind of took the weight off of the rest of the team and they were all able to play their game then.”

Glen Cove’s Nick Watson poured in 15 points, including a trio of three-pointers and a pair of free throws. Elijah English added six, while Devon Christopher and Dajoar Gibson both added a bucket.

Plainedge started the game with a torrid defensive pace, creating havoc and confusion for the Big Red and edging out to an early 15-6 lead at the conclusion of the first quarter.

“Truth be told they started out playing good defense,” Falen said. “They got their hands in the passing lane and that made a big difference as they were able to get some easy layups, and they were hitting their free throws.”

Plainedge’s Michael DeSantis and Blake Hagerstrom both contributed 8 points. As a team, Plainedge hit 5 three-pointers and made 9 free throws, which made up for a combined 66 percent of their total points. In the halfcourt set, though, especially in the second half, Glen Cove hassled the Plainedge ballhandlers into bad decision-making and errant passes.

“When you play defense and get a hand in the passing lane and see the ball, it opens up the whole court,” Falen said.

Down two points at half, Glen Cove clawed back with persistence and perseverance to outscore Plainedge 36-16 in the second half. Vaughan’s fervor for success showed in the second half after yet another fast-break layup where he hunched into a low defensive stance, slapped the hardwood, and invited opposing ballhandlers into his defensive half.

“(Vaughan) is our most vocal guy and that’s sometimes what you need,” Falen said. “That kind of guy that isn’t afraid to talk it up and gets the other guys going.”

This game brings Vaughan’s season average to roughly 19 points per game, an impressive feat for the Glen Cove star.

As for the team’s season, this redemption game against Plainedge was its first conference win. Falen feels as if senior night was a nice caveat for Glen Cove’s first league victory.

“The way they played defense tonight, if they had played that way all season the win-loss ratio would be different, but this is our first league win and to get it on senior night for the guys was nice; I’m happy for them,” Falen said.