On Dec. 23, two undefeated league rivals squared off at the Westchester County Center as Eastchester and Rye tipped off before a Westchester Knicks contest. When the final whistle sounded, however, only Eastchester’s perfect record remained intact as the Eagles turned a solid defensive outing into a 43-30 win over the Garnets.
Senior point guard Benny DiMirco led the way for Eastchester, scoring a game-high 19 points and putting the game out of reach with an offensive flurry in the third quarter. After the Garnets cut the lead to four on a 3-pointer by Michael Carty, DiMirco scored the next nine points, giving his team a sizable lead that they wouldn’t relinquish in the final stanza.
“[DiMirco] is a terrific player,” Rye coach John Aguilar said. “He started to get hot and there wasn’t much we could do.”
But it was Eastchester’s defense that caused the biggest problem for the Garnets on the day, Aguilar added. The Eagles caused 10 turnovers and did not allow Rye—which was led by seven points from George Kirby—to establish a rhythm on the offensive end.
“It was just a great defensive effort by Eastchester,” Aguilar said. “To force 10 turnovers on us, that doesn’t happen, just about ever.”
The Eagles, however, also had trouble keeping control of the ball early on, but settled in nicely to take a 22-14 lead heading into the half. According to Eagles’ coach Fred DiCarlo, it’s not unusual to see even the most seasoned teams take some time to acclimate to the pressures of playing at the County Center, which also plays host to the Section I semifinal and championship rounds.
“I knew the nerves were coming and I just figured that the team who was going to settle down quickest was going to win,” DiCarlo said. “And we know how tough it is to shoot at this place, so we just stressed playing lockdown defense and letting that defense lead to good chances on the other end.”
The loss put the Garnets at 4-1 on the season, while Eastchester improved to 8-0. Unfortunately for the Eagles, the winning streak came to an end on Dec. 26 when they were felled by CHSAA Stepinac 57-54 in the opening round of the Slam Dunk Challenge Tournament, which was also held at the Westchester County Center. During the consolation round the following day, the Eagles dropped their first game to an in-section opponent with a 58-40 loss to Class AA White Plains.
“Playing on this floor, playing in a gym like this, it was a good experience,” DiCarlo said. “The competition we play is only going to help us, and it’s going to help us judge where we are.”
