Nichols wins another close one

Another close call, another win for the Nichols boys basketball team.

Will Regan nailed a pair of free throws with 35 seconds left to give the Vikings a 55-54 triumph over Williamsville South in the AdPro Monsignor Martin-ECIC Challenge on Thursday night.

The line proved to be a great place for Regan, who went 10 for 11 from the stripe in scoring a game-high 21 points. He also grabbed 17 rebounds, while Connor Vandegriff added 16 points and had 10 boards (six offensive) for the Vikings, who needed overtime to win their previous contest last Friday against Grover Cleveland in the Pastor-Cooper Tournament.

South made Nichols’ life difficult with good ball pressure, forcing several bad passes and 30 turnovers.

In another Challenge game, Lorenzo Joseph and Robby Swartz handled the scoring, while Stephen Beck provided the intimidation as Niagara Catholic defeated Cheektowaga, 58-51.

Joseph scored a game-high 21 points for Catholic, which led by 16 at halftime. Swartz added 17 points, but 6-foot-10 Beck had 15 rebounds, blocked four shots and altered others as the Patriots improved to 3-2. . . . Justin Mitchell had 21 points, while Connor Kobis added 18 as Bishop Timon- St. Jude beat Lake Shore, 61-47, in another AdPro game.

Rivera, Jamestown blitz North

After a scoreless first-half, Jamestown’s Carlos Rivera simply went off to end Williamsville North’s perfect start to the season.

Rivera scored all of his game-high 20 points in the second half, canning four three-pointers during the final two minutes of the third quarter, to lead the host Red Raiders to a 60-52 triumph in ECIC I boys basketball.

Rivera’s outburst helped unbeaten Jamestown (2-0, 1-0) reverse a 30-22 halftime deficit. Ben Cecchini added 14 points and 10 boards in the win, as the Red Raiders finished with seven treys. Alex Barth canned three three-pointers during an 18- point performance for North (4-1, 1-1).

Elsewhere, Kenyon Edwards had 23 points and 11 rebounds, while Melvin Virgil added 16 points as Grover Cleveland defeated nonleague host East Aurora, 75-59. Thad Wier had 22 points in the loss. . . . In another nonleaguer, Maritime Charter beat Yale Cupper Hutch-Tech, 73-66, as Stephen Cordova led the way with 23 points.

In ECIC II, Williamsville East used a 22-9 fourth quarter to win at Iroquois, 69-56. Mark Rutecki (22 points, 10 rebounds) finished one block shy of a triple-double in the win.

Cleveland leads Lackawanna

Darren Cleveland’s biggest basket of the game came with 45 seconds left in overtime as his shot broke a 64-64 tie and propelled Lackawanna to a 68-64 triumph over Maryvale in the first round of the Town of Hamburg Lions Tip-Off Tournament.

Cleveland finished with 17 points and grabbed 11 rebounds as the Steelers improved to 2-2 and kept Maryvale winless. Dondre Alexander scored 16 of his game-high 26 points in the first half but sank a pair of free throws with 15 seconds left for the final margin. As a team, Lackawannna made 13 of 14 free throws during the final 12 minutes (fourth quarter and overtime).

Frontier advanced with an 89-77 win over St. Francis as Jason Norsen had 29 points, 14 rebounds and six blocks in the win, while Mike Grundtisch added 20 points.

Ken West girls beat East

Kenmore West defeated Kenmore East, 38-34, in the Niagara Frontier League girls’ basketball opener for both teams.

Joelle Pollack had a game-high 21 points for Ken East, but Ken West reserve Ashley Krier (14 points) provided her side with early energy, while Jenna Rickan (10 points, five rebounds) was a star on defense in helping the Blue Devils win the battle of Kenmore on the road.

All-WNY football

The News’ All-Western New York football team will be revealed on Saturday.