“All those seniors really knew what it meant to play here [at Taunton] and they remember the feeling when we lost a year ago,” said W-H coach Bob Rodgers.
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“I walked out of the gym last year thinking, 'Hey, it could happen again.' But we all know how hard it is to get back. Tomorrow is never promised.”
The third-seeded Panthers had a tough draw with second-seeded Westwood (22-3) coming in on a 19-game win streak of its own.
The Wolverines went on a 10-0 run in the first quarter and led, 15-11, in the second, but the Panthers responded with a 13-2 run to jump ahead, 31-24, by halftime.
Whitman-Hanson started the game 8 for 14 from downtown with senior Ben Rice (20 points) nailing 5 of his first 7 long range attempts.
After a slow start, senior captain Stevie Kelly erupted for 19 of his game-high 27 points in the second half, including a clutch 10-for-11 performance at the free throw line to keep Westwood at a distance.
“Coach [Rodgers] tells us you gotta smile when you shoot free throws,” said Kelly. “So we just think positive thoughts and I was thinking, 'Wow if I hit these, we're going on to the next round.'”
Westwood trailed, 45-31, midway through the third quarter, but cut into the lead several times thanks to relentless hustle and the ingenuity of junior sharpshooter James McGowan. The Tri-Valley League MVP freed himself to hit 7 triples and finished with a team-high 23 points, becoming the first Westwood player to top 1,000 career points since 2008 in the process.
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McGowan hit improbable treys to cut the W-H lead to 67-63 and 70-66 in the final minute, but Kelly was unflappable at the free throw line.
“McGowan is one of the best high school players I’ve ever seen,” said Rodgers. “To have guys in his face all night and still be able to do what he did, it’s amazing. I did not feel comfortable, literally, until [Westwood] called their final timeout [with :10 to play]. If we play Westwood 10 times, they probably win five, that’s how good they are.”
Scituate 71, Randolph 57 — Since losing to Whitman-Hanson on January 28, the Scituate boys’ basketball team has been on a roll.
The fourth-seeded Sailors stayed hot with a convincing win over eighth-seeded Randolph in a Division 2 South semifinal.
“These guys didn't make any excuses,” Scituate coach Dave Poirier said of his team's reaction to a 75-45 loss to W-H.
“They've watched that [W-H] film a ton and they know they have to do every little thing right, and that's what Whitman-Hanson does and what every team that wins is going to have to do at this point in the state tournament.”
Scituate (21-2) took an early 20-12 lead thanks to a scoring burst from Nate Lopes (11 points).
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Randolph (16-7) climbed back to tie the game, 28-28, but the Sailors scored 8 straight points to close the half and wrapped a 19-7 run around the break to open a double-digit lead they would never relinquish.
“[Randolph] did a good job of breaking up our stuff and keeping us from making a few shots in a row,” said Poirier. “The energy to get that run was important.”
Jack Poirier (21 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists) led the Sailors in scoring, Keegan Sullivan tallied 14 points with three assists, and Tom Connor chipped in 15 points. Scituate received key contributions off the bench from Turner Howell amongst others, as they tallied 15 offensive rebounds to generate extra possessions.
Poirier recognized the hustle from his players and hopes to see even more of that hunger in the sectional final.
“I can’t tell them to be hungry, that comes from them,” said Poirier. “And we’re going to have to be absolutely starving on Saturday. We have to play great, that’s all there is to it.”
Division 2 North
Belmont 72, Boston Latin Academy 64 — Belmont and Boston Latin Academy continued to trade baskets as a one-possession nail bitter approached the final minute of regulation. But it was a whistle with 30 seconds left that proved to be the game-sealer for the third-seeded Marauders (19-5).
With Belmont ahead, 63-62, Tim Minicozzi drove the lane and was fouled by BLA's Mohamed Ali. Upset with the call, Ali batted the ball towards the bench and was issued a technical foul.
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Minicozzi sank both free throws, Mac Annus converted the technical free throws, and Belmont retained possession as the 5-point free throw barrage clinched the semifinal victory over the second-seeded Dragons at Wakefield High.
Belmont, the reigning sectional champs, will look to defend their title in Saturday's final at Tsongas Arena against top-seeded Beverly.
"These are high schools kids and it's a heated situation," Belmont coach Adam Pritchard said. "One of my kids turned to me and said that's my fault for basically taunting. But that's a great team so that's a very good win for us."
The trio of Preston Jackson-Stephens (26 points, 10 rebounds), Minicozzi (23 points, 12 rebounds), and Annus (17 points) combined to score 66 of the Marauder's 72 points.
Latin Academy (21-5) led, 19-11, after one quarter and 33-29 at halftime behind four 3-pointers and 18 points off the bench from Abdulahi Aden.
But Minicozzi and Jackson-Stephens sparked a 20-10 third quarter run from Belmont to take control.
Aden (33 points) did his best to keep to keep the Dragons in it, converting a number of tough layups in the fourth quarter. Belmont responded to each Latin bucket with a layup of their own, before the free throws ended it.
“This was a really big win that was a really tough team,” Minicozzi. “We really fought in the second half and were able to hold that lead.”
Nathaniel Weitzer reported from Taunton and Matt Doherty reported from Wakefield High.
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