Griswold rallies past Stonington to win ECC III division title
STONINGTON - It was not supposed to be the Griswold boys basketball team's time to win an ECC Division III championship banner this year.
A year ago, the senior-stocked Wolverines rolled to an ECC regular season crown and tournament title. This year's junior and sophomore dominated squad was expected to wait until next season after conceding to senior-laded Stonington.
It was Senior Night for Stonington on Friday, but it was Griswold celebrating for a post-game team photo.
The Wolverines rallied from a 17-point deficit in the first half, and nine points in the third quarter, to post a 80-71 win and sweep the series with a good Bear squad.
Both teams finished 6-2 in DIII, but Griswold (12-8 overall) won all tie-breakers with Stonington (14-6).
Wolverines sophomore center Kaiden Kazlauskas scored a team-high 23 points with a variety of inside moves.
"It’s so satisfying," Kazlauskas said. "We were 0-3 to start the season and never expected to be here early. Tonight, we were rattled and got down early, but coach told us we’re never out of it the way we shoot."
Senior first-year varsity guard Sean Garvin made five 3-pointers and finished with 17 points. Sophomore guard Colby Mills had 17 points, including four 3-pointers, while senior point guard KinKade Rubino added 12 points, including 10 in the second half.
"This is sweet and not expected, not at all," Griswold coach Rob Mileski said. "We're a bunch of young kids and I thought we were a year away. It's very satisfying. The only one who played last year was KinKade off the bench. I'm getting a little emotional because I'm so proud of them."
Comeback kids
Stonington looked primed to be the Senior Night celebrants, jumping to a 27-10 lead early in the second quarter. Bears senior guard Robbie Scavello, one of the ECC's top scorers with 23 a game, hit two straight hoops for his 14th point.
"They punched us," Mileski said. "I'm looking at Stonington getting out to the big lead and I say to myself, 'We're not ready.' All of a sudden, a couple of plays here and there and we're on a roll."
The 6-3 Kazlauskas ignited the comeback, attacking the rim against Stonington's 6-foot-8 shot blocker Alex Nowak. Garvin’s outside shooting and Mills' creative offense keyed a 21-4 Wolverine run to tie the score at 31 with a minute left in the first half.
Scavello, who scored a game-high 33 points, sank two hoops to give the Bears a 35-31 halftime edge.
"Kazlauskas is not intimidated," Mileski said. "He's gone against 6-10 (Juan) Morel of Waterford, 6-8 Nowak here and everyone's big guy."
Stonington opened the second half on fire, taking a 49-40 lead with three minutes left in the third on a 3-pointer by Alex DePerry (18 points).
Griswold didn't panic again. Rubino's 3-pointer sparked a 12-2 run to end the quarter with the Wolverines up, 52-51.
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Poise down stretch
Stonington led 58-54 early in the fourth before Griswold amped up its halfcourt defense to force turnovers while showing excellent ball movement. Mills made two treys and Rubino sank one in a 13-5 run for a 67-63 Griswold lead.
Rubino then made four straight free throws and Kazlauskas stepped out to bury a 3-pointer for a 74-67 edge.
"I'm so proud of Kinkade," Mileski said. "Basketball is his third best sport. He does it to stay active and play with a bunch of guys. But there he was hitting big threes and free throws down the stretch."
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Stonington upset
For much of the year, Stonington has been ECC Division III's best team, handling opponents that have beaten Griswold. Bears coach Jay Wosencroft saluted Griswold for sweeping his club - the Wolverines won by a point at home last month - and also lambasted his senior squad's defensive execution.
"Our defense was atrocious," Wosencroft said. "We're a good team, but our Achilles Heel all year has been not always buying into the game plan and doing things that’s a benefit to themselves and not the team. We've got to turn it around and get ready for the ECC tournament where we might see them again."
This article originally appeared on The Bulletin: Griswold tops Stonington to win ECC boys basketball divisional title
