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CNS vs Bville Senior Night

Photo Credit: Robert Grossman

CNS vs Bville Senior Night

Photo Credit: Robert Grossman

CNS vs Bville Senior Night

Photo Credit: Robert Grossman

CNS vs Bville Senior Night

Photo Credit: Robert Grossman

CNS vs Bville Senior Night

Photo Credit: Robert Grossman

CNS vs Bville Senior Night

Photo Credit: Robert Grossman

CNS vs Bville Senior Night

Photo Credit: Robert Grossman

CNS vs Bville Senior Night

Photo Credit: CNS ATHLETICS

CNS vs Bville Senior Night

Photo Credit: CNS ATHLETICS

CNS vs Bville Senior Night

Photo Credit: CNS ATHLETICS

CNS vs Bville Senior Night

Photo Credit: CNS ATHLETICS

CNS vs Bville Senior Night

Photo Credit: CNS ATHLETICS

CNS vs Bville Senior Night

Photo Credit: CNS ATHLETICS

CNS vs Bville Senior Night

Photo Credit: CNS ATHLETICS

CNS vs Bville Senior Night

Photo Credit: CNS ATHLETICS

CNS vs Bville Senior Night

Photo Credit: CNS ATHLETICS

CNS vs Bville Senior Night

Photo Credit: CNS ATHLETICS

CNS vs Bville Senior Night

Photo Credit: CNS ATHLETICS

CNS vs Bville Senior Night

Photo Credit: CNS ATHLETICS

CNS vs Bville Senior Night

Photo Credit: CNS ATHLETICS

CNS vs Bville Senior Night

Photo Credit: CNS ATHLETICS

CNS vs Bville Senior Night

Photo Credit: CNS ATHLETICS

CNS vs Bville Senior Night

Photo Credit: CNS ATHLETICS

CNS vs Bville Senior Night

Photo Credit: CNS ATHLETICS

CNS vs Bville Senior Night

Photo Credit: CNS ATHLETICS

CNS vs Bville Senior Night

Photo Credit: CNS ATHLETICS

CNS vs Bville Senior Night

Photo Credit: CNS ATHLETICS

CNS vs Bville Senior Night

Photo Credit: CNS ATHLETICS

CNS vs Bville Senior Night

Photo Credit: Robert Grossman

CNS vs Bville Senior Night

Photo Credit: Robert Grossman

CNS vs Bville Senior Night

Photo Credit: Robert Grossman

CNS vs Bville Senior Night

Photo Credit: Robert Grossman

CNS vs Bville Senior Night

Photo Credit: Robert Grossman

CNS vs Bville Senior Night

Photo Credit: Robert Grossman

CNS vs Bville Senior Night

Photo Credit: Robert Grossman

Boy's Basketball 2/11/2026 6:14:00 AM Kenny Lacey

Youth powers C-NS to senior night win

It may have been senior night for the Cicero-North Syracuse boys basketball team, but it was the team's youth that stepped up in the Northstars' 63-58 win over Baldwinsville at home on Tuesday. The full game can be watched here.With Baldwinsville inching closer in the third quarter, junior Nadarren Carter Jr. scored all of his 14 points in that quarter, keeping C-NS ahead. Freshman Ayden Stevens then scored 11 of his team-high 18 points to put the game away in the fourth quarter. "(Stevens is) a special talent. You don't coach a kid like that. You just let him go, see what he can do," C-NS coach Kyle Martin said. "You try not to overcoach a guy like that. And he's just a kid. You're gonna see him on the scene for a long time. And he's also a really nice kid."For a freshman to go off — it takes a kid that is liked by his teammates. A lot of seniors and juniors and sophomores on our team might not like a freshman going off, might be some jealousy. That hasn't been the case with Ayden. The kids love him the most and they root for success, which is special for him. But it's because of the way he acts."Stevens knew how big the game was for his senior teammates and wanted to step up for the leaders of the Northstars squad."Dom (D'Avirro), (Diezal Hall) and (Miy'Jon McDowell-Reid) all just help me through everything," Stevens said. "(D'Avirro) texts me outside of games and practices and he tells me what I could do and gives me good advice."McDowell-Reid is the only senior who is a regular starter and the only one who receives consistent playing time, but Hall and D'Avirro joined him in the starting lineup on Tuesday, a C-NS senior night tradition."Every time you go into seventh grade, you got 15 kids in the grade. Three stuck it out. So we wanted to honor them," Martin said. "But really, those kids for sticking it out all these years, they deserve to start and they deserve the win, too. So it's all about them. And they persevered. You know, it hasn't been an easy year, but they're still here, they're still standing. And that's all that matters."Making it more special, D'Avirro and Hall scored in the first quarter. For D'Avirro, it raised his season total to four points. Hall's two points were his first points of the season.McDowell-Reid came into the game averaging just under 10 points a game and finished Tuesday with seven points, but his contributions are bigger than what you see on the court, and it was felt in the team's pre-game senior recognition ceremony.When the PA announcer acknowledged McDowell-Reid, his whole team joined in to celebrate. His football coaches and teammates also made their way to centercourt to huddle around their leader and show their appreciation."He's just the heart and soul of the program right now," Martin said. "He was the lone senior back that started last year. He's always guarded the toughest guys. We make him do everything. Sometimes we play him for 32 minutes. He just shows up every day, through good or bad and brings it. He means a lot to us."When the game got underway, it looked like C-NS would run away with it early.The Northstars built a 23-13 lead heading into the second quarter and extended it to as many as 14 points before Baldwinsville began to fight back.The Bees narrowed the gap a bit in the second quarter, but the Northstars maintained control of the game. C-NS led 33-25 after two quarters.In the third quarter, Baldwinsville made things interesting.After a quiet first half, Baldwinsville's leading scorer, Matthew Pope, returned to form and stepped up in a big way for the Bees.Pope scored eight points in the first half but dominated the third quarter. He poured in 12 of his game-high 25 to pull the Bees within a point multiple times.On the other side, Carter Jr. was having the quarter of his life.Whenever Baldwinsville would get within one possession, Carter Jr. would respond with a 3-point shot or an and-one play to hold off the Bees. He capped the quarter with a buzzer-beating 3-pointer to give C-NS a 50-46 lead heading into the final eight minutes of the game. "Nadarren's a leader. Things weren't going his way this season," Martin said. "We had an hour-long phone call a week ago. I said, 'You're going to start, we're going to get you going.' And he's had two great games in a row. He's just a dog, you know, he's a tough kid. He hasn't let adversity make him quit." If the third quarter was Carter Jr.'s, the fourth belonged to Stevens. Like Carter Jr. in the third, Stevens came up with all the clutch shots in the final quarter. Whether it was a 3 from the corner, a drive to the bucket or a free throw to ice the game, Stevens was in the zone. "(I was) just playing, simple, with confidence," Stevens said. "My teammates, just looking for me, kicking it out, just helping me."Stevens' big quarter allowed C-NS to put the game away and hold on for the five-point win — the only game they've won by single digits all season. Despite entering Tuesday's game with a 7-11 record, the Northstars' closest win had come by 17 points. Winning a close one so close to the postseason was an important step for C-NS, Martin said. "(Baldwinsville has) really good players. They have a really good coach," Martin said. "They scored 60 versus Nottingham the other day, which is no small feat. We know they're a really good opponent and they just are young like us. So to win our first close game is huge." The Northstars improve to 8-11 on the season and have one regular-season game left before postseason play begins. They will host Rome Free Academy on Thursday. "We might play RFA again (in the playoffs). We don't know. I don't know if you want to show too much on Thursday night," Martin said. "You might want to just scale it down and run one thing. So we'll see, but obviously this is a huge win."

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THE OFFICIAL ATHLETIC SITE OF THE CICERO-NORTH SYRACUSE NORTHSTARS

Youth powers C-NS to senior night win

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