Hooks, Dibble lead Porters over Southold
PORTERS 82, FIRST SETTLERS 70
Because of foul trouble, Austin Hooks was a virtual non-factor in Greenport’s season-opening high school boys basketball game. Game 2, on the other hand, was a different story entirely.
Hooks was a force majeure, rebounding with a fierce determination and joining forces with Gavin Dibble to lead the Porters to an 82-70 defeat of Southold on Monday night. It was Ev Corwin’s first win as Greenport’s coach.
The Porters (1-1 over all and in League VIII) hit the court like gangbusters, catching Southold (1-1, 1-1) off guard in its home opener and taking much of the suspense out of the rivalry game early by knocking down one shot after another. Greenport netted 9 of its first 13 shots from the field, shooting out to a 26-11 lead by the end of the first quarter. The Porters led by as many as 28 points when a 13-0 run — with 7 of those points coming from Dibble — made the score 47-19 late in the second quarter.
The Porters shot a sizzling 20 of 27 and outrebounded their hosts by 21-9 in the first half. Dibble had 18 of his 28 points by halftime.
It was evident that a lot more separates the two teams than a four-mile stretch of road.
To their credit, the First Settlers cut away at the large deficit in the second half to make the final score respectable. Liam Walker, the team’s talented guard, was a big reason, providing a game-high 30 points. It was 7 points shy of the career-high figure the junior put up in Southold’s season-opening win over Shelter Island.
But the Porters brought too much for Southold to handle. Dibble was his usual non-stop, energetic self, and he had a hot hand, to boot. He shot 9 of 15 from the field, including 4 of 6 from beyond the 3-point arc.
Hooks never got into a rhythm in the season-opening loss to Stony Brook. He played 19 minutes and 7 seconds before fouling out with only 4 points in that game. On Monday, though, the senior center made up for it. He turned in a tremendous game, totaling a career-high 27 points to go with 15 rebounds. And that was despite battling a cramping calf muscle that forced him to leave the game for a short while late in the fourth quarter.
The Porters also received 12 points from Timmy Stevens, 11 points from Angel Colon and 10 assists from Brian Tuthill.
Alex Poliwoda dropped down six 3-pointers as part of his 25-point performance for Southold. Kenji Fujita supplied the First Settlers with 9 assists.
