RallyNorth.net

LEXINGTON | Lexington head basketball coach Bob Farias looked around before the opening tap last night and said it was the first time in memory that his team's bandbox gym wasn't sold out for a playoff contest.

Swampscott High coach Paul Moran must have thought Salem was going to set the world record for 3-pointers against his team last night.

The Witches shot trifectas at a dizzying pace, making an improbable 16 of them in thumping the Big Blue, 85-60, in the regular season finale for both state tournament-bound teams.

Freshman Antonio Reyes is heating up and the timing couldn't be better for Salem High, which heads into the Division 1 North Tournament next week.

Reyes, a 5-foot-10 guard who plays more of a power forward spot because of Salem's lack of size, poured in 29 points against Beverly last Friday and followed it up with 24 points against Haverhill Sunday. Salem finished the regular season at 15-5, winning their seventh straight game last night, 85-60, over Swampscott.

Antonio Reyes has the poise of a Scoonie Penn or a Rick Brunson at the freshman level | and that's not a reach. The 6-foot all-star and pride of Prospect Street is probably the best fresman prospect to wear the Salem High Witches uniform since Erik Groszyk.

When Salem forward Chris Dunston got into second half foul trouble, Tommy Doyle needed to find a solution.

The Witches are undersized to begin with, but going small against a Lynn Classical team that features a pair of athletic big men in Jarrell Byrd and Tony Johnson just wasn't an option. So Doyle, on a hunch, went with 5-foot-11 widebody Danny Byors, hoping the junior could provide a little rebounding and toughness in the post.

There are late-game dramatics, and there are fantastic finishes.

Then there are those ultra rare, simply unbelievable scenarios that seem hard to believe if you weren't there to witness it yourself.

Gregory Martinez accomplished something yesterday that his parents never thought could happen six months after a bicycle accident that left the teenager with severe brain and spinal injuries.

Greg was back in the Salem High School gymnasium, surrounded by friends and cheering on his basketball teammates. He was the star of the show, joking with his parents and his coach Tom Doyle, and dribbling a basketball with his left hand from his wheelchair.

The Salem High boys basketball team's seven-game winning streak came to a halt last night. Not surprisingly, it took a great defensive team to slow them down.

The two teams came into the contest with identical 7-3 records, but the Witches could not handle the much taller Magicians, who owned the boards at both ends in a 61-49 decision.

Salem High has such a rich basketball tradition that fans aren't surprised the team is 7-3 at the halfway point. But it's safe to say that the Witches have never had a season like this.

Coach Tommy Doyle has his smallest team in five years at the helm. His biggest player, Chris Dunston, tops out at 6-foot-1 and still manages 10.2 rebounds and 7.2 points per game. Other than that, Doyle essentially starts four point guards in seniors Junior Lugo and Chris Maxson, sophomore Bryan Ortiz and freshman Antonio Reyes.

The Gloucester boys basketball team was hoping to get the second half of their season off to a positive start last night.

The only problem was a white-hot Salem team was standing in the way. The Witches came into the contest playing their best basketball of the season, riding a four-game winning streak.