BURLINGTON — During its stellar postseason, North Andover has had multiple dominant quarters, scoring as many as 32 points during one 8-minute span.
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Boys Basketball, 03/14/18 » 0 Comments & 0.0 Stars
LOWELL — Lawrence couldn’t have found a worse time to have its worst quarter of the season.
Missing lay-up after lay up and free throw after free throw, the second-seeded Lancers watched a two-point deficit after three quarters blow up in the fourth quarter as top-seeded Everett ran away with a 68-56 victory in the Division 1 North finals at the Tsongas Center.
“We have to give credit to Everett,” Lawrence coach Ramond Nunez said. “They were playing in this game because they’re a great team. They’re well coached and we were competing against them. You have to give them credit for their defense and they’re offensive execution.”
Playing in its first North final since 2011, Lawrence opened the game unable to find the basket, converting only four of its 17 first-quarter shots.
“I just mentioned that there were no words I could say or any of my assistant coaches could say to take away the pain of the loss of this game,” Nunez said. “But throughout the year, they’ve represented themselves well, the city, themselves, their family and their school. We couldn’t thank them or appreciate them more.”
After falling behind by 11 only 5 minutes into the game, Lawrence rallied in the second quarter behind Christian Kinsley and Juan Felix Rodriguez, who combined for 11 in the second quarter to forge a 30-29 halftime advantage.
Not only did Kinsley nail three three-pointers in the half, but also held Everett’s 2,000-point scorer Ghared Boyce to 7 in the half.
But Boyce was not to be denied in the second half, scoring 10 in the third quarter and 21 of his game-high 28 after intermission.
“Coach told me to keep being aggressive, so I got to the line and got to the basket,” Boyce said. “And we finished on defense to win the game.”
Lawrence (21-3) trailed 43-41 entering the fourth, but the Crimson Tide (23-1) scored the period’s first 11 points to take a 54-41 lead. Boyce scored 10 of Everett’s first 12 points in the quarter.
The Lancers, meanwhile managed only a Chris Ruiz drive with 5:02 remaining during the first six minutes of the crucial fourth.
But Everett’s defense was the story, holding down the explosive Lancers, who averaged 74.0 points in their previous two tourney games.
“We played great defense,” said Everett coach John DiBiaso, who won his 500th career game last week to go along with his 304 football victories. We worked as a team. We asked a couple guys to cover (Luis Reynoso, 6 points) and (Juan Felix Rodriguez, 11 points). We alternated guys on them, and they did a great job.”
Ruiz led the Lancers with 14 points, while Kinsley added 12 and Rodriguez 11.
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Boys Basketball, 03/10/18 » 0 Comments & 0.0 Stars
WOBURN — Kyle Moore had already proven deadly from 3-point range.
But his final 3-pointer, with the clock ticking down Friday, was not only was the biggest of his young career, but one of the most memorable shots in North Andover history.
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Boys Basketball, 03/09/18 » 0 Comments & 0.0 Stars
MANCHESTER — Trevor DeMinico scored 23 points and Salem made a late run but the No. 12 Blue Devils lost to No. 5 Manchester Central, 73-60, in the opening round of the Division 1 boys basketball tourney.
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Boys Basketball, 03/08/18 » 0 Comments & 0.0 Stars
NORTH ANDOVER — It wasn't home, but it sure felt that way for the Lawrence High boys basketball team.
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Boys Basketball, 03/07/18 » 0 Comments & 0.0 Stars
In Division 2 opening-round action, No. 6 Coe-Brown pulled ahead by 11 after three quarters but No. 11 Pelham fought back to cut the lead to 2 points. Coe-Brown shot lights out from the free throw line late to pull away for the 58-49 win. Drew Brown had 17 points for the Pythons.
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Boys Basketball, 03/06/18 » 0 Comments & 0.0 Stars
PLAISTOW — You certainly couldn't fault the effort.
Playing a first-round Division 2 opener against Milford.the Owls played sound defense, outrebounded the visiting Spartans and got more than their share of loose balls.
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Boys Basketball, 03/06/18 » 0 Comments & 0.0 Stars
Jake Hebert hit a contested layup with two seconds left as No. 5 Merrimack Valley won a 52-51 thriller over No. 12 Windham in opening round action. Riley Desmarais and Drew Kelley had 12 points each for Windham.
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Boys Basketball, 03/06/18 » 0 Comments & 0.0 Stars
LAWRENCE — Nick Clark looked around at the blue sea of Methuen alums, both old and young, still mingling around the Central Catholic court.
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Boys Basketball, 03/06/18 » 0 Comments & 0.0 Stars
NORTH ANDOVER — As the Scarlet Knights drained shot after shot, Marblehead wasted no time scrapping its man defense for a zone. Unfortunately for the Magicians, nothing short of a lid on the bucket would have denied North Andover in Sunday night’s Division 2 North quarterfinals.
Six different players scored during the first six minutes as the third-seeded Knights converted nine of their first 10 shots while opening up a 17-point lead en route to an easy 76-51 victory.
“Coach (Paul) Tanglis always tells us to come out focused,” said sophomore guard Kyle Moore, who was 4 of 5 from 3-point range in the first half while scoring 14 of his 16 points. “He obviously wants us to be ready and to throw the first punch. It’s all about us. If we play like a team, I don’t think anyone can beat us.”
Marblehead (13-9) immediately was taken out of action Sunday. The Knights led 27-8 after the first quarter and 43-17 at the half. As a team, North Andover was 17 of 26 from the field, including seven of nine from distance at the break.
“Obviously, we were shooting the ball well,” Tanglis said. “The offense was going well, but it was our defense. And that’s where it starts for us. If we defend and we shoot it well, then we become a real good team. It was a great team win from wire to wire.”
The halftime break didn’t cool off the Knights, either. A 7-for-11 quarter gave them a 65% shooting mark entering the fourth with a 60-35 lead — their largest of the night.
Moore and Garrett Murphy led the Knights with 16 points while Darren Watson added 15 and Jake McElroy had 12 points and five assists.
When it was over, it was obvious the Knights would carry some much needed momentum against Brighton, which is making its fourth-straight appearance in the North semifinals.
“They are big and physical,” Tanglis said. “They are tough and don’t have any weakness, so we’re going to have our work cut out for us.”
Up Next: Brighton
No. 3 North Andover (17-5) takes on No. 7 Brighton (15-7) at 7 p.m. Thursday at Woburn High in the Division 2 North semis. Defending state champ Brighton upset No. 2 Arlington 66-62 in the quarters.
Brighton beat the Knights in the 2015 first round and the great 2013 team in the North finals.
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Boys Basketball, 03/04/18 » 0 Comments & 0.0 Stars
