Moonlight pg 11 10-21-21

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Prep Winners
Top: Moonlight Madness dunk contest champion Simon Hildebrandt of the Centaurs Gold prep basketball team, right, with Woodstock Academy athletic director Sean Saucier. Above: Moonlight Madness 3-point contest champ Logan Talbot of the Centaurs Blue prep basketball team, right, with Woodstock Academy athletic director Sean Saucier. Photos by Denzel Washington/The Woodstock Academy.

There were a couple of “normal” events at Woodstock Academy last week.
After a year’s hiatus, Moonlight Madness – the introduction of the Centaurs Gold and Blue prep basketball teams returned to the Alumni Fieldhouse.
“We got to do it this year,” said Gold head coach Jacque Rivera. “I told our kids, ‘Don’t lose sight of where you were last year at this time. We weren’t able to do this.’ We were playing a modified version of each other. I told them to count their blessings and be happy for the opportunity.”
Although they had to mask up, as did the players on the court, fans were also allowed into the gym for the first time in two years for a basketball game.
“It was very exciting,” said Gold prep basketball player Jayshane Woodard. “The past year of COVID, we didn’t have the fans to hype anyone up inside the gym. The audience made everything better. It got the adrenaline flowing.”
After a traditional full team introduction complete with spotlights, several of the players got to compete in an NBA-style skills competition.
The 3-point contest came down to the final shot with Academy graduate and now Blue prep team member, Logan Talbot, just edging his new teammate, Woodard.
Woodard hit 11 3-pointers in the opening 1-minute round which consisted of four players shooting from a stationary spot. Talbot hit nine.
The two then squared off in an “Around the World” 3-point competition with the players shooting from five different spots on the floor for a minute. Talbot hit his ninth just as time expired to give himself the one-shot victory.
Four players also competed in the dunk competition with Simon Hildebrandt from Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada just edging out New Jersey’s Kunga Tsering.
“(Simon) did that windmill with his two hands - I gave up,” Tsering said with a laugh.
The Gold and Blue prep teams finished off the night with a full 40-minute scrimmage complete with officials. The Gold just edged out the Blue, 66-64.
Woodard and Jamine Charles led the 12 players who scored for the Gold team with 10 points each. “We’re still getting our roles together. It was fun to play as a team with the refs and an audience but we’re still picking up pieces. We’re still working on it every day in the gym but I love what I’m seeing. I can’t wait for the upcoming season,” Woodard said.
Only seven players scored for the Blue led by Tsering with 18 points. Jan-Viljam Homanen from Finland finished with 13 points and Keon Henderson contributed 11.
“I loved the energy, I loved the hustle from both teams. This is everything that we have been working on and it’s good to see what we’ve been preaching and yelling at them for in practice was actually on display,” said Blue head coach Denzel Washington. “Of course we had some missed rotations and missed box outs, but it was really good to see them get after it and challenge one another.”
The Gold and Blue teams will participate in the PJN Classic preseason tournament Oct. 23 and 24 in Springfield, Mass. The first game for the Blue will take place Nov. 3 on the road at Notre Dame-West Haven. The Gold will open Nov. 6 at home against the Thetford Academy Black squad.
Marc Allard
Director of Sports Information
The Woodstock Academy

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