Amityville boys basketball earns overtime victory after receiving championship plaques
Allan Dodson-Isabell of Amityville drives to the basket in the fourth quarter against Sayville on Monday. Credit: Michael A. Rupolo Sr.
The Amityville players back from last season were called off the bench one by one to accept a prize for their work — a commemorative plaque for claiming the Suffolk Class AA championship.
“That felt good, but we’ve got to do it again,” said Amir Dickerson, their standout senior guard.
After Monday’s ceremony, Sayville was intent on containing Dickerson and held him to 11 points. But Dickerson hit two free throws with 42.3 seconds left in overtime and the second proved to be the winning point.
The now-Class A Tide held on for a 48-46 Suffolk V boys basketball win, snapping a three-game skid and evening their record at 3-3.
“I was happy for the team last year,” said Jack Agostino, now in his final season as Amityville’s head coach. “We had a great run. I really loved that team. They were just a little smarter. We’re trying to get these kids [there]. We’ll get them there.”
The Golden Flashes dropped to 6-4 under new coach Kevin O’Halloran, having fallen twice to Amityville by only a combined six points. Jack Mahon sent the rematch to OT for them, hitting from in close with 13.5 seconds remaining, tying it at 41.
“I think we have a lot of guys buying in to what we’re doing on both sides of the ball,” O’Halloran said, “guys buying into a culture, a family mentality, playing for each other.”
Allan Dodson-Isabell scored 15 for the Tide, who led 24-20 at halftime and 35-31 after three. The junior point guard gave them the lead for good with his fourth three — 44-43 with 2:39 left in OT.
It was 45-44 and then Dickerson canned his two key free throws. Sayville's Wesley Jones, an inside force with 20 points, scored to cut it to 47-46. Then Dodson-Isabell went 1-for-2 from the foul line at the 15.7 mark. The Golden Flashes’ final shot was off target.
Their defense had kept them in play.
After Isaiah Nixon sank a three for a seven-point Amityville lead with 6:42 remaining in the fourth, Sayville blanked the Tide until overtime.
“Just changing defenses,” O’Halloran said, “giving them different looks.”
In the first quarter, the game was paused after Dickerson’s first bucket. He received a commemorative basketball for becoming the seventh in program history to score 1,000 points, a mark he reached in the previous game against Hempstead.
“It meant a lot,” Dickerson said. “From my sophomore year, I didn’t think I’ll have a thousand.”
