Avon Basketball Close to Comeback, Loses NCCC Semifinals

Avon frequently closed the scoring gap, chasing down its opponent in the NCCC semifinals, but the Coventry Patriots maintained the lead to win 72-66 Tuesday in Enfield, according to The Hartford Courant.

"Coventry deserves credit for executing offensively and hitting shots," Avon varsity basketball head coach Chris Vozzolo wrote in an e-mail to Patch. "They also were great from the free throw line down the stretch. We kept getting close, however they continued to answer from the free throw line."

Sophomore Sean Herrmann led his team in scoring, sinking five from behind the three-point arc, according to The Courant. He scored 23 points in the game and his teammate, junior guard Ryan Marioni recorded 18, Vozzolo said.

Going into the game, Avon was seeded second in the conference, The Courant reported.

"It is difficult to win a game against a good team if you don't play the entire 32 minutes," Vozzolo wrote to Patch. "We came out with no energy defensively. Our help defense left much to be desired."

After the win over the Falcons, Coventry advances to the finals against Enfield Thursday, according to The Courant.

It's not over for Avon though. The Falcons are scheduled to play East Lyme at home in the first round of the Class L state tournament on Monday, March 5, Vozzolo said.

Did you take photos at the game? Please upload them to this article.