Wins vs Harrison, Tappan Zee Set Rye Boys Basketball Up with #3-Seed for Playoffs
The Rye Boys Basketball team finished the 2024-25 regular season on a three-game win streak, defeating Harrison 54-49 on Friday, February 14, and Tappan Zee 47-38 the next day to sweep the weekend. With the wins, the Garnets have locked up the #3 seed for section 1 playoffs and are guaranteed home court advantage for the first two round of the postseason should they advance past round one.
Friday Win vs Harrison
Rye completed the season sweep of Harrison on Valentine’s Day, doing so in comeback fashion again and prevailing 54-49. The Garnets trailed for almost the entire game, and their largest deficit stretched to 14 points in the third quarter. Rocklan Boisseau completed a three-point play to cut the Harrison advantage to 11, and by the halfway point of the final period, the Garnets held the lead. Jake Kessner hit the go-ahead three pointer with 36.7 seconds to play in regulation.
“[The] great resolve and resiliency and never-give-up attitude was on display once again by this group,” Head Coach Tommy Proudian told MyRye.com. “We’re never out of a game because of this teams refusal to quit. Even sweeter that it came against our rivals, Harrison.”
Rye had previously beaten Harrison by five points in a game that followed a very similar script. This game featured senior night festivities before tip-off and a benches-clearing brawl with two seconds to go. Regardless, the Garnets picked up the clutch comeback victory.
Kessner led the way with 17 points for Rye, followed by Henry Shoemaker’s 11. The Garnets outscored the Huskies 40-19 down the stretch, which included eight free throws by the Garnets in the third quarter alone. The three point defense for Rye also improved greatly in the second half. Re-watch the action here.
Saturday Win vs Tappan Zee
The defense was the difference maker for Rye in their matinee victory on Saturday, February 15, as they took down Tappan Zee 47-38. The Dutchmen entered the contest 18-1 in class AA, and the Garnets handed them just their second loss of the season. Rocklan Boisseau was the surprising scoring leader with 11 for Rye, including the go-ahead triple with four minutes to play.
“Great team defensive effort holding Tappan Zee to only 37 points,” Proudian said after the game. “Rocklan scored all 11 of his points in the 2nd half… great clutch performance.”
Tappan Zee entered the contest in first place in class AA. The score was tied at 38 with 3:58 left in the fourth quarter when Boisseau sank a three from the top of the key. The defense prevented the Dutchmen from scoring again, and with the help of a couple more baskets and some free throws, Rye clinched their third consecutive victory. Watch it back here.
What’s Next?
Rye will enter the class A postseason tournament as the #3 seed and will host their first two playoff games, if they win the first. The opponents will be determined at some point during the upcoming week. The first contest will be at the Rye High School gym at 7:00pm on Saturday, February 22.
