By Jim Stout
MaxPreps.com
Holy Name of Worcester is ranked No. 1 in Central Massachusetts, mainly through the work of its offense.
On Tuesday night, however, the Naps showed they can play defense with the best of teams.
Holy Name held No. 4 St John's of Shrewsbury scoreless for over six minutes in the second half and knocked off the rival Pioneers for the second time in 2006-07, scoring a 69-46 win in Shrewsbury.
"Our defense always goes overlooked because we have all these weapons on offense," Holy Name senior co-captain Michael Baldarelli told the Worcester Telegram. "In practice we work hard and we really get the job done on defense."
While Holy Name (10-2, 3-0 Central Mass Conference) was shutting St. John's down defensively, its offense came to life and reeled off 17 consecutive points, sending the Naps to a 50-26 lead with 9:14 to play.
Just prior to the 17-0 run, St. John's (10-4, 2-1 CMC) received baskets from sophomore Matthew LaBove (12 points) and senior Austin Keeley (12 points) to start the second half, cutting the Holy Name lead to 33-26.
"Our defense is what we tried to commit to because that's how we're going to win games," said Holy Name coach Jason Chavoor. "We're not going to win a lot of games with our offense. That's what we're looking for, defense, defense, defense, and our offense will take care of itself."
After St. John's had pulled to within seven points early in the second half, Holy Name's Baldarelli and Ryan Brown took over. Brown scored 10 of his game-high 22 points in that decisive six-minute span, while Baldarelli added seven of his 16 points.
Brown scored 15 points in the second half before Chavoor began pulling his starters with just over six minutes remaining; they had given up just seven points in the second half.
"Any time you come out here and get a win, it's huge," Baldarelli said. "We played as a team really well. We came out strong, which we really haven't (done) lately. Everyone was hitting shots and it was a good all-around game."
The win was Holy Name's second of the season over St. John's. The Naps handed the Pioneers an 81-60 defeat in the first round of the Laska Invitational in December.
Boston League Bops Big Three
The Boston City League swept the first Boston-Big Three Conference challenge at UMass-Boston on Sunday, with No. 4 East Boston downing No. 11 Brockton, 90-68, and Boston English defeating New Bedford, 66-54.
Basketball X-perts, a Boston-area organization that conducts development camps, clinics and showcases, sponsored the inaugural event.
East Boston (10-1) responded to Brockton's sundry of pressure defenses by throwing poised baseball passes to beat the press and swift cross-court passes to solve the traps and double teams. They also plowed through zone defenses in the lane and beat defenders off the dribble against man-to-man.
"I invite teams to do that," East Boston coach Malcolm Smith told the Boston Globe, referring to Brockton's array of pressure schemes. He said he's confident in the decision-making of guards Tyrone Hughes (10 points) and Jeff Cannon (8 points), who kept the offensive pace under control and rarely committed turnovers.
The shooting of Richie Penha (10 points) and Tyrone Figuero (11 points) made Brockton pay for double-teaming the ball and packing in its zone defenses. Six-foot-three-inch Elezar Clayton controlled the inside, banging against Brockton's Jeff McNair (three blocks) and Louis Montes on his way to a team-high 19 points.
"He's very good in the middle . . . (with) a great basketball mind," Smith said.
Junior Kyle Gerry (18 points) kept Brockton in the game, pouring in floaters, putbacks and 3-pointers to help hold East Boston to a 37-35 halftime lead.
Austin Prep Carves Out a Basketball Legacy
Austin Prep won its first nine games this season, which on face value alone was no extraordinary feat.
But consider the following about this small Reading, Mass., Catholic school, which is best known in the winter for its hockey program:
Five years ago, the basketball team had neither a home gym to play in nor a league to compete in. Basketball was an afterthought. Losing and anonymity were a way of life.
But now the Cougars are playing in the Catholic Central League's Small Division, where they don't have to face the bigger CCL teams like Arlington Catholic and Archbishop Williams. They've made the state tournament in each of the past three seasons, with last year's 13-7 team advancing to the Division 4 North semifinals before losing to Ipswich by three points.
They took records of 9-0, 7-0 into Tuesday's game against Trinity Catholic.
"I was actually told six years ago that we probably wouldn't have any success here and that nobody would ever care about us because of hockey," Austin Prep's sixth-year coach, Lorne Lucas, told the Boston Globe.
Two weeks ago, Lucas became the all-time winningest coach in the history of the program with just his 55th career win.
"It's still a hockey school," said senior guard Jim O'Toole (24.4 points per game, 5.6 assists per game). "But they definitely deserve that credit. We're still trying to get established and get our own credit."
Matt Bouvier is averaging 17 points per game and 11.3 rebounds for Prep, while Tim Kent is averaging 16.6 points per game.
Sasso Hits 1000-Point Plateau for Fenwick
Bishop Fenwick's Ryan Sasso overcame a nervous start and finished with 28 points, enabling the Peabody native to reach the 1,000-point mark for his career in an 83-74 Catholic Central League victory over host St. Mary's of Lynn Tuesday night.
Sasso, who needed 20 points for the milestone, also produced 10 rebounds and six assists. He was eight-of-16 from the floor and 10-of-12 from the foul line.
"I was kind of anxious at the beginning, somewhat tense," the 6-0 point guard told the Salem News. "I started feeling better late in the first half and when we got to the locker room Coach (Sean) Connolly and the guys calmed me down. Coach said let the game come to me - and that's what I tried to do."
Sasso said St. Mary's used a Triangle-and-two defense that targeted him and 6-foot-7 teammate John Squires (15 points, 18 rebounds).
"Once the other guys began hitting shots, St. Mary's had to take that defense off - they had to get out of it - and that opened up a lot of shots," Sasso said.
He reached the 1,000-point mark on a lay-up with about nine minutes remaining.
"It's a nice accomplishment, but I'm glad it's over and done with. Now we can get on with the season," Sasso said.
Mike Clifford (16 points, 14 rebounds) and Steve Blaisdell (11 points) also were in double figures for Fenwick.
Quick Turnaround For Nashoba Tech
Nashoba Tech of Westford, just two years removed from a winless season at 0-20, is off to an 11-1 start and is currently in first place in the Colonial Athletic League. Tech has already secured a Central Mass. Div. 3 sectional tournament berth.
"I've gone full-circle, from the bad times to the good times," Nashoba Tech senior tri-captain Josh Coole told the Lowell Sun.
"The 0-20 season was real tough. It really stunk. I found out how losing affects everyone. That's what makes this year so great. It's my senior year and we're going to the states. It just doesn't get any better.
"Coach (Rob) Beaudette deserves a lot of the credit. Once he came here, everyone started feeling different. He worked us a lot harder. He taught us more fundamentals. We've been more of a team the last two years."
Nauset On the Move
Nauset Regional of Eastham (8-4, 7-1) tuned up for its Atlantic Coast League South showdown with Falmouth on Friday night by beating Sandwich, 64-45.
Sandwich (4-10, 4-4) stayed with Nauset for the first 8« minutes before Nauset went on 20-8 tear before the intermission and established a 37-26 halftime lead.
Point guard Chuck Nicholson, one of Nauset's few seniors, enjoyed a stellar all-around game, leading all scorers with 21 points and adding 10 assists and five steals. Nauset coach Keith Arnold carries seven sophomores on his roster.
Connor Seymour, a 6-5 junior center, recorded a triple double as he had 10 points, 10 blocked shots and 11 rebounds.
''Anything we got inside they sent back out,'' Sandwich coach Mike O'Brien told the Cape Cod Times.
''These kids have come a long way,'' Arnold said of his Nauset team.
''Tonight things started to fall into place. We played a typical Mike O'Brien team tonight - those kids work their tails off.''
Wareham Remains On Top In SCC
For the second time this season, Wareham's star center, Aaron Strothers, gave the Dighton-Rehoboth basketball team more than it could handle. He scored 25 points en route to a 72-54 victory for the Vikings in South Coast Conference play.
Along with giving 19th-ranked Wareham (10-2, 10-0) a consistent inside force on offense, the 6-7 Strothers stayed active without the ball, getting key steals, rebounds and blocked shots.
The win wasn't quite that easy for Wareham, however. The Vikings trailed 23-20 before a time-out with 5:12 remaining in the half. The speedy guard play and 3-point shooting of D-R forced Wareham to switch from man-to-man defense to a 2-3 zone.
"Their guards were quicker than I remember. Their guards were good," Wareham head coach Kevin Brogioli told the New Bedford Standard-Times, referring to Dighton's speedy Mike Medeiros and Sean Petrone, who combined for 30 of their team's 54 points. "We knew Dighton was going to be a good team."
Oakmont Rebuilds In a Hurry
After graduating four starters from a 2005 team that reached the state Division 2 championship game, Oakmont Regional endured the ignominy of missing the postseason in 2006.
But the Spartans are back in short order. Led by their lone returning starter from that 2005 team, Kyle Anderson, and a host of other talented players, Oakmont (10-1, 5-0 Mid-Wach C) has already won three more games than it did last season and has clinched a spot in the district tournament.
"It's been a turnaround to this year," Oakmont coach Garry MacEwen told the Fitchburg Sentinel & Enterprise. "We're a lot more consistent, with sometimes four, five players averaging in double digits each night. At the halfway point in the season, I'm very pleased."
Ex-Cathedral Star Headed For Vermont
The University of Vermont has announced that 6-foot-9 post player Garrett Kissel, who began his career at Springfield Cathedral, will join the men's basketball program as a member of the class of 2011. Head coach Mike Lonergan made the announcement.
"We are very excited about the signing," said Lonergan. "It should help make up for the loss of our graduating senior post players, Martin Klimes and Chris Holm."
Kissel is averaging 16 points, 11 rebounds, 2 assists and 1.5 blocks per game for the season at St. Andrews in Barrington, R.I. He will look to compete right away down low for the Catamounts next season.
"Garrett is a tough, fierce competitor who will be one of our strongest players," said Lonergan. "He is an excellent rebounder who can also score inside."
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
