By Russ Waterman
MaxPreps.com
Basketball teams from all parts of the Bay State had their chance to advance in Division 1, 2 and 3 but ultimately 12 teams have all earned their way into the state championship games to be held at the DCU Center in Worcester on Saturday
Here are the matchups:
Division 1 Boys: Central Catholic (19-7) vs. St. John's (21-6), 7:30 p.m.
It might be easy to dismiss this Division 1 matchup as a slam-dunk choice for Eastern Mass. champion Central Catholic of Lawrence over Central Mass. titlist St. John's of Shrewsbury.
After all, the Raiders possess a powerful regular-season and tournament resume. They disposed of mighty B.C. High, 54-44, by shutting down the Knights on a remarkable 18-6 fourth-quarter run in the Eastern Mass. finals. And that came after conquering then No. 1 Charlestown, 74-63, in the North semifinals, followed by a nail biting 55-53 win over Merrimack Valley co-champ Lowell and a victory a month ago over Rhode Island state champion Bishop Hendricken.
St. John's, meanwhile, which started out as a five seed in Central Mass., has been the ultimate tight-wire act throughout the playoffs. Beginning with an 82-81 overtime win over 12 seed Shrewsbury, the Pioneers have gone on to win their five playoff games by a total of 15 points. Indeed, averaging 65 points per game, they have outscored opponents by only 12 points per game, the smallest margin among any boys state finalist squad.
Central Catholic has a front line anchored by 6-5 lefty forward Adrian Gonzales and 6-9 Carson Desrosier, both of whom combined for 10 blocks against a tall B.C. team, and held the talented B.C. tandem of Jake O'Brien and Ryan Sharry to a combined 18 points in the Eastern Mass final. Billy Marsden, the Raiders' premier go-to player, scored 19 of his game-high 22 points in the second half against B.C., and Wifredo Pagan is a relentless defender and solid point guard.
But the Pioneers have persisted by snapping the 17-game win streak of Western Mass. champion Longmeadow to reach the state finals, and have displayed an uncanny ability to pull out close games.
Among the heart-stopping wins by the Pioneers was a 61-59 decision over top seed Fitchburg, with a shot in the lane by David White with four seconds left sealing the victory. Anchored by 6-9 center Matt Labove, who has 3-point range and is a handful underneath, too, there is John Perron, Anthony Trapasso and White, all of whom can put up solid double-digit efforts for the Pioneers.
Division 2 Boys: Catholic Memorial (21-4) vs. Tantasqua Regional (24-0), 4 p.m.
Among all Bay State boys teams entering the playoffs as top seeds, only defending state champion Tantasqua of Fiskdale has held its end of the bargain. And with a 49-game win streak on the line, the only team standing in the way of a second straight perfect season is Catholic Memorial – again.
To the tune of 78 points for and 45 points against per game, the Warriors have trounced Central Mass. competition with barely a bump in the road. Predictably, playoffs games have led to much tighter results, especially on March 8, when they had to pull out a 63-62 decision over St. Bernard's Central Catholic.
The Knights, deep in talent, want to run the ball and behind exquisite backcourt play of speedy 5-7 point guard Brendan Monteiro (who can forget his last-second pull-up jumper in an 81-79 win over Dartmouth in the Eastern Mass championship game?). Meanwhile the inside presence of 6-5 Julian Colarusso often wears out rivals in coast-to-coast style. Add Allen Harris, who scored 17 points in the 74-61 win over Reading in the Eastern Mass finale, along with 12 more by Lincoln Wright (four 3s) and this is a dangerous club indeed.
The Knights imposing task will be to stop versatile 6-5 senior forward Brian Vayda, who has the ability to take over a game inside and out. Vayda scored 18 of his game-high 26 points in the second half in a come-from-behind win over two seed St. Bernard's in the Central Mass. finale. They took care of Western Mass. champion South Hadley (whose miraculous run included a shocking upset of No. 1 Taconic), 75-63, to advance to the state championship again.
With defense also being their forte, along with an ability to knock down long-range shots, Tantasqua also relies on Brandon Forcier and Marcus Gaudet to fuel their attack at both ends.
Division 3 Boys: Frontier Regional (23-1) vs. Scituate (23-2), 12:30 p.m.
In this contest, once-beaten Frontier is certainly the more well-known and established hoop commodity while Scituate, in its first-ever state basketball championship game (either for boys or girls), has somehow woven its way through a rough-and-tumble South into this enviable position.
The Sailors have certainly proven their tournament mettle. In rising from its four seed status, they upset 1 seed, Medfield, 66-64, and outlasted three seed Wareham before defeating Watertown, 74-61, with a 25-3 run in the last 11:25 in the Eastern Mass championship finale.
From gritty 6-9 forward Blaine O'Brien, all-around player Rodney Beldo, point guard Sam Malone and Keith Fluery, the Sailors possess several weapons in an up tempo attack. They also provided the tourney's greatest escape in the win over Medfield, when Fluery stole the ball in the backcourt and made a reverse lay-up as time expired.
Stopping the Clark twin brothers - Brian and Dan- along with Jamie Bell and Dan Clark will be foremost on the minds of Scituate, since this Red Hawks trio accounts for 70 per cent of the team's offense (76 ppg) and they key their defense as well.
The Red Hawk finally extracted a win and exacted revenge over top seed Sabis International Charter School in the Central finale. For after three consecutive years of losing to their biggest foe, they won the sectional title, 71-57. And in another example of just how dominant Bell and the Clarks can be, the trio scored more points combined (56) than Bromfield in their 61-45 state semifinal win.
Division 1 Girls: Northampton (24-2) vs. Andover (22-4), 5:45 p.m.
Both Eastern Mass. champion Andover and Northampton appear to be at the top of their game after recording several double-digit victories in their previous playoff games. While Andover thrashed New Bedford, 61-34, the Blue Devils, Western Mass. titlists, also dominated Central Mass titlist Westboro, 56-38, to win in the other state semifinal.
But Northampton's ranking on the Bay State hoop respect meter rose to the top after it shocked Springfield Central, three-time defending sectional champion and 2007 state titlist, 63-49, holding star Felicia Barron to a sub-par effort.
Northampton's 5-11 forward, Alannah Driscoll-Sbar, will command most of the Raiders' attention but in several games this season, Brighid Courtney, Cassy Sicard, Jenny Bell, Iris Santoni and Jamie Messer have come through with stellar offensive and defensive efforts.
Andover is in the hard-knocks Merrimack Valley Conference, and with a defeat of league foe and number two seed Lowell in the sectional finals – its first win in the last three sectional finals over Lowell – finally advanced.
In the senior-laden Golden Warriors win over New Bedford, their superior display at both ends of the court also featured lights-out, 3-point shooting with nine treys. Megan Thomann, who led the squad with 17 points and is one of the state's premier players, has had ample support all season from Natlaie Gomez-Martinez, Ilana Cohen and Lauren Renfro.
Division 2 Girls: Wellesley vs. Millbury, 2:15 p.m.
Few figured Wellesley, which started out the tournament as a four seed in a deep South sectional field, would ever advance this far. Millbury, however, is a far different story, with the Woolies beginning as a number one seed and completing mission to the state finals with a 58-48 semifinal win over Palmer.
But has Millbury, which easily won the South Worcester League East, been tested enough in its three tournament wins? That answer will depend on many multi-talented young players, with the Woolies leaning heavily on freshmen Julie Frankien and Sydney Bloomstein and sophomores Chelsea Perkins and Katie Nasuti to key their offense and defensive attack.
Wellesley's grinding five-game path included a win over the top Eastern Mass seed, Bishop Feehan, an Eastern Mass., South sectional title win over two seed Walpole, the Bay State Conference Herget Division foe, and finally a conquest of defending state champion Lincoln-Sudbury, 38-32, in the Eastern Mass. finale. The Raiders also depend on youth to set the pace, especially sophomore Mary Louise Dixon and freshman Blake Dietrick, while a front court of Lindsay Sydness, Jesse Miller and Corley Stone have been tough to score on.
The difference, however, in this contest will likely be settled by either team's ability to stop opponents defensively; that should favor Wellesley, which has allowed just 38 points per game in postseason play, compared to 50 points allowed by Millbury.
Division 3 Girls: Quaboag Regional (24-1) vs. Archbishop Williams (23-4), 10:45 a.m.
Archbishop Williams hasn't had many close playoff encounters thus far, though it had to hold off North sectional champ Pentucket for a 59-53 win in the Eastern Mass championship game. And the Bishops, of course, have experience gained from last year's successful run to the state title. Yet will Williams be able to slow down a Quaboag juggernaut that has produced wins by an average of 35 points and has been rarely challenged?
The Cougars don't merely present inside walls of strength in 6-2 Meaghan O'Keefe and 5-11 Samantha McCann, but also have Nicole LePrevost and Meghan Burns, who have alternated in leading the team in scoring. O'Keefe's 3-pointer with 6.3 seconds left clinched their fifth consecutive Central Mass. title, 40-39, over top-seeded Hopedale before it vanquished Western Mass crown holder Lee in the state semifinals
Still the Bishops have disposed of two seed Cardinal Spellman, a former Eastern Mass. No. 1 club, twice, including, 60-45 in the South Sectional finale, in addition to dismantling top seed Westfield, 68-38. Besides having their own inside presence in 6-3 Valerie Driscoll, they have balance and leadership from point guard Christine Duffy, Courtney McNamara and Jill LaFond.
Division 4 Boys State Final: North Cambridge Prevails
Paul Rose (32 points, six 3-pointers, 10 assists, six steals and no turnovers) ran the show for North Cambridge Catholic in a convincing 77-54 triumph over Avon for the MIAA Division 4 boys' state title. Allen St. Suring controlled the inside for NCC, scoring 19 points, including 13 in the first half, when his team built a 48-27 advantage.
Akeem Williams, Avon's 5-8 standout guard and the leading scorer in the state who had averaged 41.5 points per game in the postseason, was held to just 18 points. Deric McCottrell was Avon's leading scorer with 18.
Division 4 Girls State Final: Cohasset tops Manchester Essex in OT
Cohasset (23-2) captured the Division 4 title, 44-36, over Manchester Essex at the TD Banknorth Garden. Sammi Lehr (13 points) and Meredith Kelly (12) were the standouts for the Skippers, who were in control for most of the contest but saw the Hornets fight back to tie the game and send it to the extra session on a Dani Ciccone lay-up with 6.7 seconds left in regulation. Lehr then went on to tally seven points to keep the Skippers in total control during overtime.
Russ Waterman covers Massachusetts, Rhode Island and the New England Preps for MaxPreps.com. He may be reached at rwathoops3@aol.com.
