(By Andres Rivas, The Long Island Advance 2/15/18)

The Bellport Varsity Basketball Team took their first regular-season loss this past Saturday against Deer Park.  Despite the loss, the Clippers became co-league champions with the Falcons.

This game was painted to be the best game of the whole season, for both teams.  In their first meeting at Randy Smith basketball court, Bellport obtained a 73-58 victory.  The atmosphere demonstrated by the fans and the style of play form the home team were key to that victory.

It was a game of runs. In the fourth, Bellport went a 13-0 run and Deer Park responded with a 10-0 run of their own.  With under 10 seconds remaining, Jarell White grabbed an offensive board and put the ball in the back of the net to make it a 56-56 game.  In overtime, Bellport went on a 17-0 run to secure the victory.

But this time around, Deer Park seeked revenge; people from teams around Suffolk County did not want to miss it and were in attendance.  The Falcons took a 71-56 victory.

From the opening tip, Deer Park wanted to show who they were at home.  Bellport’s center Kavon Brown suffered an injury in the opening minutes and would not return to the game.  Deer Park took advantage of this and jumped to a 21-7 lead after the first quarter, which ended up being the difference at the end of the game.  Malik Edmead of the Falcons had 26 points, knocking down three 3-pointers and having five assists.  Josh Pismeny had 16 points and 15 boards and Keshaun Jones had 10 points and 14 boards.

For Clippers, Jarell White had 21 points and 11 boards, Kyleim Robinson had 11 points, five rebounds and five assists.  Devon Balfour had nine points, while TeAndre Rountree had six points, five rebounds, three assists and two steals.

Still, Bellport obtained a league championship along with Deer Park, marking the first time the Clippers have been champions since the 2008-09 season.  They finished with an 18-1 record.  They averaged a total of 78 points per game and allowed 59 points per game.

Jarell White finished the regular season averaging 25.1 points per game, connecting on 190 field goals, to add to that, he also had 17 double-doubles.  Kyleim Robinson finished the regular season in double figures in 18 of 19 games; one game he did not play due to sickness.  He had four games where he scored 20-plus points and one game where he scored 32.  He made 98 field goals and 28 3-pointers.  TeAndre Rountree had 12 games where he had double figures, and also totaled 120 assists.  Jaylen Trent had seven games in double figures and made 43 field goals.  Kavon Brown had six double-doubles.

Bellport’s next game will be Saturday, Feb. 17 at Bellport High School against North Babylon at noon.

(Courtesy of The Long Island Advance 2/15/18)