By Jim Stout
MaxPreps.com
Braintree High enjoyed a banner season in girls basketball in 2005-06. As a result, the Wamps raised the state Division I championship banner prior to last Friday's home opener against Framingham.
It was Framingham, however, that enjoyed the banner performance to open the 2006-07 season.
Framingham senior Denise Beliveau scored a game-high 26 points, including 17 in the first half, as the Flyers routed Braintree, 51-26, in the season opener for both clubs.
"Get the lead and keep the lead," Framingham coach Chip DelPrete told the Boston Globe, when asked about the key to the win.
"Don't let (Braintree) make a run. In years past, we've bumped the lead up, but they always seem to get back and even it up before the half and then it's a dogfight in the second half."
Braintree (0-1) had knocked Framingham out of the sectional playoffs in the semifinal round a season ago.
Beliveau made shots from the inside and out, rebounded to fuel the transition game and got herself out front on the break a few times as well. Defensively, she clogged up the interior, along with junior center Kathleen King. Braintree struggled to convert anything in the offensive end.
"It's hard to put into words," said DelPrete. "(Beliveau) did some really special stuff out there. Inside, outside. Rebounding , defensively. That's why she's one of the best players in the state."
Braintree converted just two field goals in the second half, both in the final 3:37.
Last March in Worcester, in beating Springfield Central for the state Division I title, Braintree came from nine points down in the second half to score a 59-56 victory, outscoring Central by 14-5 down the stretch and winning its first girls state basketball championship.
BC High Boys Standing Tall
Boston College High, 18-4 a year ago and with seven experienced players returning, is the No. 1-ranked team in Eastern Mass to start the season. Not only are the Eagles a veteran team, they are a big team, featuring Tim McKinney (6-5), Jake O'Brien (6-8), Andrew Yanulis (6-7) and Nick Scheimann (6-5).
"We're very big and have good team speed,'' said BC High coach Bill Loughnane. "We need to take advantage of that."
The Eagles' offense will be run by Chris Hurley, a three-year starter who would rather pass than shoot.
"People love to play with him," Loughnane said. "He knows how to play the game. If kids are open, they know he will get them the ball."
Lexington, with four starters back from its 22-2 team of a year ago, is another highly-touted team in the East region, with Tom Hennebery (84 3-pointers last season), 6-6 Matt Cunha and 6-6 Mike Andryauskas.
Though Charlestown won five state titles in 13 years under coach Jack O'Brien, the departure of O'Brien for Lynn English - where he subsequently resigned - have left questions marks surrounding the Townies. Charlestown also lost Paul Becklens, who transferred to Bridgton Academy.
Former O'Brien assistant Steve Cassidy is now the head coach at Charlestown, which lost its opener to Holy Name of Worcester.
"You just try to surround yourself with good coaches," Cassidy told the Boston Globe. "We're going to have our ups and downs at certain points, but I had a great person to learn from. I learned a great deal from Jack and hopefully I can translate some of what I learned into teaching the kids now."
East Boston is another top team in the City League's North Division.
Holy Name Tops Charlestown at IAABO Event
Holy Name senior sensation and Assumption-bound Michael Baldarelli registered 37 points, 13 rebounds, 3 steals, and 3 assists to lead Holy Name to an 81-71 win over Charlestown at the 11th annual IAABO Board 44 Tip-Off Classic.
Classmate Ryan Brown added 22 points for Holy Name (2-0).
"The kids rose to the occasion and really played well," Holy Name coach Jason Chavoor told the Worcester Telegram. "The starters - all five of them - were tremendous and the guys coming off the bench did a good job.
"Ryan Brown hit some huge shots in the first half, and his defense goes unnoticed by a lot except us, Chavoor added. "Sometimes we go as Ryan goes, and sometimes when he is going good on a day like today, we are just very thankful he is on our side."
Dominique Price was held to eight points and fouled out in the final two minutes but was effective on the boards and on the defensive end, where he shut down Charlestown's Shabazz Napier, giving up only 11 points to the Townies' talented point guard.
"Dominique played an unbelievable game with 10 rebounds," Chavoor added. "He didn't do much scoring tonight, but he sure rebounded and defended.''
Lawrence Beats Lowell to Mark New Coaching Era
Lawrence made the first week of coaching for Rick Nault a successful one as it beat rival Lowell, 50-44, in a battle between Top 20 Merrimack Valley teams at Lawrence. Nault replaced legendary Dick Licare to start the season and improved to 2-0 with the victory.
"This was big; the crowd and a real good team in Lowell ... you could feel this one," Nault told the Eagle Tribune. "Before, I was asked about pressure, and I really didn't think much about it.''
D-Y Off to Impressive Start
After going winless in 2004-05 and winning just four games last season, the Dennis-Yarmouth boys made a great first impression for the 2006-07 season as it opened with a 64-58 win at Division 1 Barnstable.
Jim Govoni scored 22 points and Bobby Ewing added 19 for Dennis-Yarmouth. Greg Chausse added 12 for the Dolphins in their first win over Barnstable since 2003. Tim Norton led the Red Raiders (0-2) with 14 points while Kevin Moran scored 11 and Chris Higgins added 10.
''I haven't looked at the stats yet, but I bet our turnovers were way down from what we averaged in the past,'' D-Y coach John Piemontese told the Cape Cod Times. ''I also thought we played really good defense and stopped guys we knew we had to stop.''
Pittsfield Loses McLaughlin
Pittsfield's Kris McLaughlin, who scored 32 points the previous night, suffered what his coach, Ron Wojcik, called a "badly sprained ankle" with nine minutes left in the game the next night against Chicopee. Pittsfield trailed by just three at the time but wound up losing by 63-50.
"(The ankle) looked pretty bad," Wojcik told the Berkshire Eagle. "I talked to (McLaughlin) before he went to the hospital and he said he just turned and it happened. Obviously, losing him is a huge adjustment. We'll just have to make those adjustments and hope he's back by the time the league season starts."
Head-turning Performances
In the South Shore League, Treasa O'Neil's 42 points led the Abington girls team over Hull, 77-73, in four overtimes. O'Neill also accounted for two overtime-forcing baskets.
In a non-league girls game, Jackie Bohenek's triple-double led Rockland past Ursuline, 59-46. Bohenek scored 20 points, grabbed 14 rebounds, and had 10 steals.
Jim Stout is the MaxPreps.com master photographer for the Massachusetts/Rhode Island area and a Northeast region columnist. He may be reached at j.stout@jmstout.org
