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LAWRENCE — Trouble only seemed to be mounting for Central Catholic.

Leading by just two points late in the third quarter to hard-charging Charlestown, the Raiders saw their top scorer — freshman Tanahj Pettway — knocked to the floor by an elbow to the face. He had to be helped to the locker room, and his night was done.

They combined for nine points but Alex Santos and Jeremy Urena were clearly the stars of the game. They were the defensive pests who harassed area scoring leader Wabissa Bede (28.5 ppg) into a rare off night. Bede scored 15 points, just two in the second half, and Central Catholic rolled past North Andover 58-34.

Kevin Fernandez stuck a 16-foot dagger at the buzzer to give Central Catholic a 55-53 win over Billerica and earn the crucial 10th win for the Raiders (10-7). Billerica tied it with 10 seconds left on a Raider turnover on the inbounds pass.

LAWRENCE — The sky seemed to be falling for Central Catholic boys basketball just two weeks ago.

The Raiders had suffered a rough loss on the TD Garden court to St. John’s Prep on Sept. 10, their fourth loss in five games, and their record had slipped to 3-7 for the season.

Sutton High walked into Memorial Gym with an 8-1 mark, looking to make a name for itself at Central Catholic's expense. The Raiders defended their turf nicely, pulling away to a 69-53 win. Tanahj Pettway led Central with 18 points, and Kevin Fernandez added 16 in the victory.

Central Catholic boys won 78-64 over previously-unbeaten Tewksbury behind  Kevin Fernandez 22 points, including two 3-pointers.

Paul Tanglis still has to serve one more game in his suspension but his brother Kevin Tanglis made his first career win a memorable one, guiding North Andover past Central Catholic 69-63.

NORTH ANDOVER — What better way to punctuate a memorable win than with a monster dunk.
It was if all the heartache that Central Catholic had inflicted on Andover in recent years was being flushed along with the basketball when tourney MVP Connor Merinder seem to soar to the rafters for a monstrous slam.
Andover beat Central Catholic for the second straight year to repeat as champions of the Licare Division at the Commonwealth Motors Christmas Classic.
Those two wins, though, have been amid much heartache. Heading into last year’s Commonwealth finale, Central had beaten Andover 22 of the last 23 meetings. Then last March, the Raiders ousted Andover in a North finals classic.
The 6-5 tri-captain Merinder did a little bit of everything (12 points, 7 rebounds, 4 blocks, 1 jaw-dropping dunk) as Andover had the game in hand most of the way en route to a 68-53.

Licare Division Awards
MVP: Connor Merinder, Andover; All-Stars: Dantae Neal, Lawrence; Tanahj Pettway, Central; David Giribaldi, Andover; E.J. Perry IV, Andover; Boudreau 6th man: Sam Lara, Central. Coaches Awards: Brian Triglione, Central; Ryan O’Connel, Andover

NORTH ANDOVER —The Commonwealth Motors Christmas Classic has its newest freshman sensation.

Tanahj Pettway, a 5-10 guard who commutes with his cousin A.J. Pettway from Worcester, dazzled the sellout crowd and lifted the Raiders to a 55-43 win over Lawrence.