Will Sarkozi has had some big moments for Mamaroneck this season, but nothing quite compares to his Jan. 9 performance against White Plains. From the opening tipoff, the junior center took control of the game, pouring in 16 of his game-high 20 points in the first half and leading the Tigers to a 69-53 victory over their league foes.
It was just the kind of game Sarkozi felt he needed.
“I had a couple of games where I was struggling, recently,” he said. “So it felt good to start the game like that, it helped me play with some more confidence.”
Head coach Tyrone Carver said that although Sarkozi made his presence felt on the offensive end, it was his team-high 10 rebounds and his effort on the other end of the floor that proved a true difference-maker.
“White Plains is historically a tough, gritty team that is relentless on the glass,” Carver said. ”And Will played really well tonight for him to do what he did offensively and also battle defensively; I thought it was enormous.”
Sarkozi was hardly the only Tiger to find a rhythm against White Plains, as Isiah Thomas (16 points, 5 assists, 5 rebounds), Jared Bader (13 points) and Tommy Martin (10 points) all were effective on the offensive end.
The Tigers led comfortably throughout, aside from a brief White Plains run in the second quarter that saw the visitors cut Mamaroneck’s lead to four points.
“We called a timeout just to reemphasize what we were trying to do; limiting our turnovers and making sure we were locating their shooters,” Carver said. “We needed to get back to our game plan.”
At 8-2 on the season, the Tigers are preparing for a tough stretch that will see them take on some of the area’s top teams in the coming weeks. On Jan. 12, they will take on undefeated Class A powerhouse Rye in the first game of the annual Tiger Basketball Tournament and next week they will tangle with league rival Scarsdale, who earned a victory over the Tigers in the playoffs last season.
“Rye is historically a well-coached team and we have a tremendous amount of respect for [head coach] John Aguilar and what he does over there,” Carver said. “We know they’re going to bring it, so we have to meet the challenge and make sure we play Mamaroneck basketball.”
Sarkozi added, “Right now, we feel like we can take it to any team in the section. But it all comes from the trust we have in our coaching staff, so we need to continue to listen to them and execute the game plan if we want to get to where we want to be.”
