By Ava McCullough
(February 26, 2025) — On February 19, 2025 the Haddam-Killingworth High School Boys Basketball team lost their Shoreline Conference playoff game to the East Hampton Bellringers 70-67.
The Cougars led at halftime by three. A replay of the three-pointer by senior Andrew Crayton with the clock at .2 in the 2nd was called “no shot” by the refs, however the shot was, in fact, good as evidenced by the shot clock timestamp. While there is no guarantee the Cougars would have prevailed, it was a disappointing call and one that was difficult to stomach after an otherwise reasonably and evenly called game.
The Cougars were led by seniors Andrew Crayton and Cody Robinson with 24 and 15 points, respectively. Junior Declan Moriarty had 12 points including two big three-pointers while junior Jay Evans had two crucial steals and three assists. Powerhouse junior Spencer Savoy had 4 points including 2 points resulting from a critical steal from East Hampton’s Brady Lynch to bring the game to within 2 points with the clock winding down in the 4th.
Also contributing for the Cougars, senior Jake McKenzie with 6 points and 6 rebounds and senior Joe Slane with 2 points and 2 significant rebounds. In the end, the Cougars fell short by 3 points, a gut-punch for a team that played hard and cohesively; their conference championship hopes were dashed by two-tenths of a second and a bad call.
The Cougars will play in the state tournament on March 1, 2025 at 3:00 p.m. against Bulkeley at SMSA High School. Please come support your Cougars in Hartford. See you on the Court.
Photos by Erin Crayton
