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WATERBURY – The Windsor boys basketball team had scored an average of 94 points in the first three games of the Division II state tournament.
Then the top-seeded Warriors hit the semifinal game against New Canaan and their momentum skidded to a halt. Windsor started off slow and struggled to hit shots. The clock was at the 2:42 mark of the first quarter when Missoni Brown hit the Warriors’ first field goal.
Windsor picked it up after halftime and is headed back to its second state championship game in the last three years, beating the 12th-seeded Rams 56-39 on Tuesday night at Wilby High School.
Windsor (26-2) will play the winner of the East Hartford-Bunnell semifinal, which took place later Tuesday night, either Saturday or Sunday at Mohegan Sun Arena.
“It feels good, but we got one more,” Brown said.
Sophomore Alex Weaver had 15 points for Windsor and junior Ji Gary added 11. Henry Chandra was the only New Canaan player in double figures with 15.
“This was a grind,” Windsor coach Ken Smith said. “This was a tough game. They didn’t slow us down; we slowed ourselves down. A lot of these guys haven’t been here.”
Windsor led 13-8 after one quarter but Colin McKiernan opened the second quarter with a 3-pointer and hit another shot and Windsor’s lead was down to 15-13. New Canaan briefly took the lead, 18-17, when Chandra made two free throws with 2:32 left in the first half. But Windsor ended the half with a 6-0 run to put the Warriors up 23-18 at halftime.
“They tried to clog the lane, they tried to stop us from scoring but we have people who can score and shoot 3s,” said senior Charles Lewis, who had nine points. “We just had to go back in the locker room, come up with a game plan.”
Windsor started the third quarter with a 9-2 run and led 34-20 with three minutes left. Weaver had seven points in the third.
Windsor will play in its eighth state championship game; the Warriors have won five titles, including in 2024 when they beat West Haven in overtime.
Windsor 56, New Canaan 39
New Canaan 8 10 9 12 – 39
Windsor 13 10 15 18 – 56
NC-Dallas George 0 1 1, Blue Vertin 2 0 4, Braxton Niedermeier 2 0 4, Will Sapione 1 2 4, Henry Chandra 4 6 15, Colin McKiernan 3 1 8, Walker Sapione 1 0 3. Totals: 13 10 39.
W- Ji Gary 4 2 11, Missoni Brown 3 2 8, Alex Weaver 5 4 15, Myles Rush 3 0 6, Charles Lewis 4 1 9, Adam Afolabi 1 0 2, Theo Perkins 0 1 1, Jamison Greenfield 1 0 2. Totals: 21 12 56
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Then the top-seeded Warriors hit the semifinal game against New Canaan and their momentum skidded to a halt. Windsor started off slow and struggled to hit shots. The clock was at the 2:42 mark of the first quarter when Missoni Brown hit the Warriors’ first field goal.
Windsor picked it up after halftime and is headed back to its second state championship game in the last three years, beating the 12th-seeded Rams 56-39 on Tuesday night at Wilby High School.
Windsor (26-2) will play the winner of the East Hartford-Bunnell semifinal, which took place later Tuesday night, either Saturday or Sunday at Mohegan Sun Arena.
“It feels good, but we got one more,” Brown said.
Sophomore Alex Weaver had 15 points for Windsor and junior Ji Gary added 11. Henry Chandra was the only New Canaan player in double figures with 15.
“This was a grind,” Windsor coach Ken Smith said. “This was a tough game. They didn’t slow us down; we slowed ourselves down. A lot of these guys haven’t been here.”
Windsor led 13-8 after one quarter but Colin McKiernan opened the second quarter with a 3-pointer and hit another shot and Windsor’s lead was down to 15-13. New Canaan briefly took the lead, 18-17, when Chandra made two free throws with 2:32 left in the first half. But Windsor ended the half with a 6-0 run to put the Warriors up 23-18 at halftime.
“They tried to clog the lane, they tried to stop us from scoring but we have people who can score and shoot 3s,” said senior Charles Lewis, who had nine points. “We just had to go back in the locker room, come up with a game plan.”
Windsor started the third quarter with a 9-2 run and led 34-20 with three minutes left. Weaver had seven points in the third.
Windsor will play in its eighth state championship game; the Warriors have won five titles, including in 2024 when they beat West Haven in overtime.
Division II semifinal
Windsor 56, New Canaan 39
New Canaan 8 10 9 12 – 39
Windsor 13 10 15 18 – 56
NC-Dallas George 0 1 1, Blue Vertin 2 0 4, Braxton Niedermeier 2 0 4, Will Sapione 1 2 4, Henry Chandra 4 6 15, Colin McKiernan 3 1 8, Walker Sapione 1 0 3. Totals: 13 10 39.
W- Ji Gary 4 2 11, Missoni Brown 3 2 8, Alex Weaver 5 4 15, Myles Rush 3 0 6, Charles Lewis 4 1 9, Adam Afolabi 1 0 2, Theo Perkins 0 1 1, Jamison Greenfield 1 0 2. Totals: 21 12 56
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