NORTH SALEM, N.Y. - North Salem’s boys basketball team gave fans a season to remember.
After a semifinal rout of Children’s Village, the Tigers captured the first section title since 2018 with a thrilling comeback win over Tuckahoe at the Westchester County Center.
A week later, the squad made history by delivering the program’s first regional championship with a dominant 66-40 win over Pierson High School.
Hoping to keep the playoff magic alive, the Tigers headed to Binghamton’s Visions Veterans Memorial Arena on Saturday, March 21 with a spot in the state finals hanging in the balance.
Standing in their way were the defending Class C state champion Berne-Knox-Westerlo Bulldogs, led by 6’7” Airforce Academy-commit Shane Kirker.
Undaunted, the Tigers were on the board first courtesy of Jameson Juan, but BKW would quickly shift the momentum and close out the first quarter up 28-9.
North Salem found themselves down 51-29 at the half, but the squad was determined to go down swinging. Lucas Virzi (17 points), Bryce Bryant (15 points, 9 rebound), Max Cotrone (9 points, 3 rebounds), Jameson Juan (9 points), and Connor Meehan (8 points) all fought tooth and nail to keep North Salem’s playoff hopes alive.
As time ticked down and the Bulldogs piled on the points, a rally simply wasn’t in the cards and BKW pulled away for a 100-66 win.
Despite coming up short, the Tigers can hold their heads high knowing that they will be the new yardstick with which all future teams will be measured.
With the season over, North Salem will say goodbye to seniors Jameson Juan, Max Cotrone, Patrick Dooley, Sean Randall, and Connor Meehan.
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