Locker room speeches and second half adjustments really do work.
Despite trailing for the first two quarters, Sachem East went on a 14-0 run in the third quarter against Whitman and captured a, 38-23, win in the Suffolk County Class AA semifinals at St. Joseph’s College on Saturday afternoon.
Second-seeded Sachem East (18-2) will face the winner of the North Babylon (20-1)-Commack semifinal on Tuesday, Feb. 26 in the Class AA championship at Ward Melville High School. Game time is 5:30 p.m.
East, who missed about 10 layups in the first half, was down, 19-16, at halftime. After the strong third quarter, Whitman (16-2) didn’t score until 4:21 of the fourth quarter and only registered four points in the second half. By then, it was too late.
To this point, Sachem East eliminated Brentwood, Riverhead and now Whitman on their path to a county title.
-Words by Chris R. Vaccaro