Catholic Memorial dismantled top seed Bishop Feehan, 88-70, in a Division 2 South sectional contest, sending a firm message the defending state champions won't be giving up their crown without a fight.
With Dan Brooks pouring in 22 points and point guard Jeff Tagger (17 points and six assists) and Allen Harris (18 and seven assists) making big contributions, the No. 8 Knights blew out to a 24-9 first quarter lead
But it was the Knights’ defense, with unforgiving, full-court pressure that finally took its toll on the Shamrocks (19-3), who drew a bye after taking the Eastern Athletic Conference title.
The Shamrocks trimmed the lead to five with four minutes left in the second quarter but Tagger and Harris then each hit two treys to expand the lead to 48-34 at the break.
A Matthew Boulter layup brought the hosts to within eight, 50-42, early in the third period before the roof fell in with the Knights wearing down the hosts.
“This is one of our best games of the season,” Knights head coach Denis Tobin said.
Nick Sheehan finished with 16 points with Boulter adding 14, Mike Adams 12 and Mike Mathieu 10 for the Shamrocks.
“They (CM) have a ton of options,” Bishop Feehan head coach Matt Freeman said. “They can hit threes and they can drive. But this loss should not dampen our season because we won more games than we have in the past seven years.”
Division 1 North
* No. 5 Everett powered its way to a 63-47 win over No. 13 Andover with outstanding efforts by Dio McCloud (16 points) and Matt Costello (15).
* David Miller had 21 points while Danny O’Keefe and Lance Green had 17 and 18 points respectively, for No. 2 Lexington in a 79-57 win over No. 15 Acton Boxborough.
* With 6-10 junior center Carson Desrosiers anchoring the middle for a triple-double of 18 points, 14 rebounds and 13 blocks, top seed Central Catholic beat No. 17 Somerville, 73-51.
* Jeremy Subervi had 17 points for No. 3 Lynn English in a 74-64 defeat of No. 6 Lowell.
Division 2 North
* Andrew Musler had 20 points and Nick Destefano added 19 points with five treys for No. 9 Belmont in a stunning 60-54 win over top seed Westford.
* Tommy O’Connell led the way with 13 points for No. 10 Burlington in a 65-47 stunner over No. 2 North Andover, 65-47.
* Hannell Velez was game-high scorer with 26 points in No. 3 Woburn’s 78-64 win versus No. 11 Dracut.
Division 3 North
* Kyle Stockmal had 19 points and Marco Coppola 15 for No. 1 Watertown in a 78-42 romp over No. 7 Lynn Tech.
* Top seed Bishop Fenwick needed Phil Egan’s game-winning shot with 2.5 seconds left to pull out a 69-68 thriller against No. 8 Bedford.
Division 4 North
* Samir McDaniels scored 17 points as No. 9 New Mission eliminated No.1 Georgetown, 54-51.
* No. 14 Snowden hung on to edge out Manchester Essex, 53-52, behind 18 points from Justin Robinson and a game-saving block by Jose Vasquez at the buzzer.
Division 1 South
* Unbeaten Brockton won its 21st straight, 76-54 over No. 8 BC High, fueled by Timothy Young’s 23 points, and 22 points and 12 rebounds by Jarrad Devaughn.
* Matt Bodden had 17 points for No. 2 Durfee which squeezed past No. 7 Madison Park, 63-60.
* No. 5 Marshfield engineered a 31-point turnaround keyed by Barrett Murphy (22) and Aaron Davis (19) to stun No. 13 Taunton, 66-54.
* Geoffrey Woodberry (16) made the go-ahead basket with a few seconds left in No. 3 Newton North’s win over upset-minded No. boys Needham.
Division 2 South
* Matt Dean scored 17 points for No. 4 Franklin in a solid 61-45 effort over No. 2 Stoughton.
* Milton had a monster effort from Emanuel Hutcherson (27 points, 18 boards) in a runaway 102-75 victory over No. 15 Dorchester.
Division 3 South
* No. 1 Wareham blew past No. 8 Coyle-Cassidy, 82-43, behind double-digit scoring from Jordan Rezendes (18), Ryan Pina and Jules Tavares (15) and Darren Gray (11).
* No. 2 Scituate leaned on a combined 38 points by Anthony Parham and Rodney Beldo in a 57-41 victory over No. 12 Cardinal Spellman.
Division 4 South
* No. 1 Westport knocked out No. 8 West Bridgewater, 85-64, on a 20-point, 20-rebound effort by Justin Couto and 23 points by Matt Medeiros.
* Robbie Raymond made his third three-pointer count the most, burying a trey with 18 seconds left to clinch a 48-46 win for No. 7 Mashpee over No. 18 Dover -Sherborn, 48-46.
* Max Barbosa led all scorers with 24 points in a 72-64 win for No. 4 Cathedral against No. 6 Nantucket.
Division 1 Central
* Ike Osafo tallied 25 points and Mark Berry added 17 for No. 5 Worcester North in an 82-77 semifinals upset win over top seed Fitchburg, 82-77.
* Richard Rodgers had 13 points in No. 3 St. John’s 52-47 victory over No. 6 Wachusett.
Division 2 Central
* Andrew Gosselin nailed six three-pointers in a 24-point performance to spur No. 8 St. Bernard to a startling upset over top seed Southbridge, 81-57.
* Behind 18 points each by Luke Fichtel and Craig Rufiange, No. 14 Oakmont continued its surprising run with a 65-53 triumph over No. 11 David Prouty.
Division 3 Central
* Stefan Forsberg and Jon Copeland combined for 40 points in top seed Sutton’s win over West Boylston, 68-54.
Division 1 West
* Jesse Coulon had 15 points to lead a balanced attack for top seed Northampton in a 60-54 over No. 8 West Springfield.
* No. 2 Sci-Tech was led by Arthur Williams’ 16 points, one of four Cybercats in double figures, in a 64-59 win over No. 7 Commerce.
Division 2 West
* Devin Reid fired in 22 points and four treys for No. 7 Mohawk to topple No. 2 Taconic.
* Ricky Burke rescued No. 1 Hoosac with a game-ending, buzzer-beating three-pointer in a 52-49 win over No. 8 Mahar.
* Jake Gubitose and Dan Kemp shared team-high honors with 15 points as No. 4 Tantasqua, defending sectionals champ, moved on with 50-47 overtime win over No. 5 Groton-Dunstable.
Division 3 West
* No. 8 St. Joseph slowed down the game but couldn’t slow down Andre King who scored 19 points in a 49-31 victory by top seed Sabis.
* Five players, led by Charles Jackson with 16, scored in double digits for No. 2 Leadership in a 70-56 win over No. 6 Easthampton.
