West Hartford’s Hall High School lost to Fairfield Ludlowe, 77-69, in the second round of the CIAC Division II boys basketball tournament.

Sports reporting is sponsored by Keating Agency Insurance

By Brooklynn Knowles

This Monday, Hall hosted Fairfield Ludlowe for the second round of the CIAC state tournament. Hall entered as the No. 8 seed, and Fairfield Ludlowe followed closely as No. 9. This one-spot difference set the stage for an intense game right from the opening tip.

Both teams stepped onto the court with confidence, having made it to the second round of the tournament. Hall, in particular – after a close win vs. Cheney Tech on March 6 – came in determined to show exactly what that one-spot ranking difference meant.

From the jump, it was a tight game. Fairfield Ludlowe got a couple of small leads here and there within the first quarter, but couldn’t hold on to it when Hall caught their fire. A defensive block from Hall’s Nico Gilbert on the defensive end, immediately followed by a knock-down 3 from Aiden Delaney, ignited these Titans with a newfound energy.

In response to this, Fairfield Ludlowe had to use its first timeout with only 1:30 left in the first, in hopes of disrupting Hall’s momentum and keeping the game within reach.

At the end of the first quarter, Hall led 16–13, thanks to Eli Kramer, who scored 11 of the Titans’ points in that frame.

The second quarter was just as competitive as the first. Fairfield Ludlowe continues to try to slow the game down for Hall, drawing foul after foul, wanting to control the speed of the game.

After two free throws cut Hall’s lead to one, Timmy O’Brien quickly responded by knocking down a vital 3-pointer to keep the Titans ahead. On the next possession, O’Brien stole the ball from a Fairfield Ludlowe player, brought it up the court, and found Delaney, who did what he does best and hit another 3-pointer. This sequence pushed Hall’s lead to 25-18 and reignited the Titans’ offense.

Going into the second half, Hall was up 34-29, hoping to maintain the lead they held for the majority of the first half, all the way through the last buzzer.

Both teams came out ready to play. Despite having no points in the first two minutes, Hall’s hustle and resilience stood out this quarter. In particular, Lincoln Bush hit a big 3-pointer, which gave the entire gym a much-needed boost in energy. Moments later, Bush made a smart play on an inbound pass, hitting the ball off an opponent’s leg to regain possession for Hall. This play was promptly followed by another timeout from Fairfield Ludlowe with 3:14 left in the quarter.

Despite the Titans’ constant efforts to grow their lead, Fairfield Ludlowe remained close.

The quarter ended with more back-and-forth, Hall being unable to completely break away, going into the third with an eight-point lead.

From the jump, the game seemed to be playing out as it had all night, but with 5:30 remaining in the game, momentum began to shift. Following a Fairfield Ludlowe timeout, and with Hall still leading 61-55, the Falcons found their rhythm.

None of Hall’s shots were falling, and with three minutes left, the game was tied up 65-65. In less than 75 seconds, the Falcons scored five points and Hall called the second timeout of this final quarter.

In the final minutes, the game slowed down. Hall had to foul to stop the clock, which did not suit their usual style of play. This allowed Fairfield Ludlowe to take advantage at the free-throw line, while Hall struggled to regain its offensive flow.

When the final buzzer sounded, Fairfield Ludlowe secured the comeback and beat Hall 77-69 to advance to the next round of the tournament where they faced top-seeded Windsor, which was the winner Thursday night 97-62.

It was Fairfield Ludlowe’s Carlo Noecker that kept them in the game Monday night as he led his team with 41 points. Noecker consistently put pressure on Hall’s defense, drawing 10 shooting fouls and earning repeated trips to the free-throw line. Those extra opportunities proved crucial in fueling Fairfield Ludlowe’s late comeback.

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