This evening, the boys’ basketball team ran past Smithtown Christian, 52-23, in the 4th Annual Silent Night Game to earn their 22nd consecutive victory over the Knights dating back to 1999.

The Bears raced out to a 9-0 lead thanks to a steal and score by Jai Narain, a Seamus Scanlon 3-pointer, and a pair of buckets by Owen Sobel. Despite the early surge, the Swanson faithful remained silent, awaiting the Silent Night tradition of withholding cheers until the Bears score their 10th point. Scanlon finally shattered the stillness with a free throw at the 5:10 mark, becoming the first Bear to break the silence on two different occasions (he also accomplished the feat in 2016).

With the tension abated, the Bears continued the onslaught, running their unbroken scoring spree to 15-0 after a Scanlon fastbreak layup. The Knights finally ended the run with a layup, but the Blue & White ran off 13 more consecutive points to put a stranglehold on the game. Narain ignited the run with a 3-pointer then added a steal and score, Rex Eshirow registered a steal and score, Scanlon added another layup, Narain pilfered another before finishing the fastbreak with a dunk, and Sobel capped the run with a layup. When the dust settled, the Bears owned a 28-2 lead. The Knights scored to end the quarter to trail 28-4 after the first.

The Bears scored all three of their second quarter field goals off of offensive rebounds as Andy D’Alessio, Jerry Li, and Josh Aduba each corralled a carom and finished a layup inside. Li also added a block at the buzzer as the Brook went into the break ahead 35-10.

Both teams began the second half cold. D’Alessio finally ended the collective three-minute drought with a trifecta, but the Bears’ offense ground to a halt the remainder of the frame before Narain capped the quarter with a 3-pointer to give the Brook a 41-14 edge heading into the fourth.

The Knights started the fourth with a 7-2 run, but the Bears responded with seven straight points thanks to a 3-pointer and layup from Pete Simone and a bucket from Li. Josh Aduba capped the victory with an offensive rebound and putback to provide the final points in the 52-23 win.

Narain led a balanced scoring attack that included Scanlon (8), Sobel (8), Li (6), D’Alessio (6), Simone (5), Aduba (4), and Eshirow (2).

The Bears return to action after the Christmas break.

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Silent Night History

Dec. 15, 2018	vs. Smithtown Christian	W 52-23	Seamus Scanlon FT
Dec. 2, 2017	vs. Shelter Island	W 68-46	Emil Vaughn 3-pointer
Dec. 9, 2016	vs. Ross School	W 50-26	Seamus Scanlon 3-pointer
Dec. 5, 2015	vs. Rocky Point	W 76-60	Luke O’Connor layup

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