Half Hollow Hills East boys basketball's Adrian Merchant, LJ Merchant help avenge loss to Deer Park
Half Hollow Hills East’s Adrian Merchant, left, and LJ Merchant celebrate a basket during a boys basketball game against Deer Park at Hills East High School on Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026. Credit: Kathy M Helgeson
Hills East-Deer Park I came down to a single point, and here was Wednesday’s sequel coming down to the same sweaty, airtight finish.
Deer Park had survived on its home court three weeks prior, handing Hills East one of its five losses by three points or less.
Now the rematch was tied and the RedHawks had the basketball. They missed, and then they missed again. And then Adrian Merchant grabbed the offensive rebound and converted the layup with 11.3 seconds to go.
And Hills East held on for a 61-60 Suffolk III victory.
“It feels great, just knowing that we lost to this team earlier in the season,” Merchant said. “And to get a win at home, we’re a different team.”
The RedHawks, now in AA after winning the county AAA title last year, began the season with a new starting five. This team moved to 8-8 overall and 7-5 in the league after LJ Merchant, Adrian’s younger brother, scored 15 points, and Adrian and Christian Rossi added 11 apiece.
“I feel like nobody wants to play us come playoff time,” coach Mike Marcelin said. “We’ve been battle-tested all season.”
Hills East was down by six with 2:51 remaining. But it chipped away and went ahead 59-58 on two free throws by Shane Williams with 51.3 seconds left.
Brandon Sorrese went one for two at the line to tie it. But then Adrian Merchant, the RedHawks’ most experienced player, made his biggest contribution, scoring for a 61-59 edge.
Damien Scott hit one of two free throws for the Falcons at the 7.3 mark to make it a one-point game.
After two missed foul shots by the RedHawks, a Deer Park three-point try hit the rim — buzzer.
“It’s who has the will to win,” Marcelin said of these competitive League III games. “Today we had it.”
Scott topped the Falcons (13-4, 10-3) with 21 points and Drew Delargy had 13.
But Delargy missed some time in the first half after getting hit in the nose and leading scorer Nusanti Delbridge missed his third straight game due to an injury.
Still, Deer Park trailed just 26-23 at halftime and led 42-40 after three.
“We ask our kids to do a tremendous amount of work and they work very hard, and they deserve results,” coach John McCaffrey said. “And they’ve gotten results the whole season long. Unfortunately, we didn’t get results today, but it doesn’t mean we won’t get results tomorrow.”
