Lincoln, MSC meet in playoffs
Plenty of Valley flavor in tonight’s quarterfinals
Lions travel to Mount in quArtErfinAls
They’ve staged playoff encounters on the gridiron and diamond, yet the memories of longtime Pawtucket sports aficionados are a bit fuzzy when it comes to boys basketball postseason encounters between Shea and Tolman.
What isn’t up for debate is the treat that awaits tonight at 6 o’clock when the Raiders welcome the Tigers to Shea’s gymnasium, nicknamed “The Cage,” for a Division II quarterfinal-round clash. This time, bragging rights aren’t the only item on the line. Someone will advance to the semifinals – scheduled for this Friday at North Kingstown High School – while the defeated party must come to grips with their divisional run ending at the hands of their crosstown rival.
Shea, the No. 4 seed, was expected to reach the round of eight. Tolman, the No. 12 seed, has a bit of a Cinderella thing going on after upsetting No. 5 Chariho on the Chargers’ home floor last Friday. The 71-64 win in the preliminary round by the Tigers might have been the worst thing to happen to the Raiders from the vantage point of chomping at the bit at the prospect of what awaited after passing their own playoff test.
Knowing that a familiar opponent was lurking in their tier of the D-II bracket may help to explain why Shea took a while to get on track in Saturday’s eventual 85-63 blowout win of No. 13 Burrillville.
At halftime, the Raiders were only up three (38-35) against the same Broncos outfit that Shea had no trouble with when Burrillville came to Pawtucket earlier this month. Behind 33 points from junior standout Erickson Bans, the Raiders got their act together to setup another chapter in the sports annals between crosstown rivals.
“There is no message. I don’t have to pump these guys up,” Shea head coach Steve DeMeo said.
“They get to play their buddies from Shea. It’s a win-win and should be fun,” Tolman mentor Bill Coughlin said.
The home-court edge might belong to the Raiders, though the memory of Tolman’s 6052 win over Shea still burns brightly. That’s because the regular-season meeting took place two Fridays ago. The Tigers defended their turf behind senior Justin Carvalho, who made all the right plays en route to pouring in 30 points.
The momentum might be residing on the Tolman sideline, thus it will be interesting to see if Coughlin and his assistants stay with the status quo with what worked the first time against Shea. The Tigers did a pretty good job of holding Bans to seven field goals and 26 points, though he did make 12 trips to the foul line.
“It’s hard to find that balance between dancing with who brought you and putting a new wrinkle or two in,” Coughlin said. “I have great assistant coaches and I’m sure we’ll put a great game-plan together. The kids are also great. Their basketball IQ is very high.”
The win over the Raiders was part of a hot finish to the regular-season for the Tigers that was transferred to the playoffs. Tolman has won five of its past six.
On the flip side, the Raiders have made noticeable strides when it comes to easing some of the scoring burden on Bans. In last Thursday’s regular-season finale against Cranston West, DeJuan Hayes and his 14 points were key in a 59-54 win. The playoff win over Burrillville saw Marquis Gomes come through time and time again on his way to netting 21 points.
“There are other teams that we would probably rather face. On the plus side, we’ve got them coming here,” Shea’s DeMeo said. “I respect the heck out of Bill. He’s one of the best coaches in D-II, if not the best. They’ve really turned it on.
“Now the season they’ve wanted is in their view,” DeMeo continued, “but it’s also in our view. We’ve got to take care of business.”
The Tolman-Shea matchup is one of several boys’ basketball games that A). take place Tuesday night, B). feature local teams, and C). have a trip to their respective semifinals on the line.
In Division I, No. 5 Woonsocket heads to No. 4 Mount Pleasant for a 6 p.m. contest. It will be the rubber match between two teams that won on the other’s home floor. In early January, the Novans went to the Kilites’ gym and came away with a 74-66 victory.
No. 9 Cumberland remains in the mix for a spot in the open state tournament after defeating Smithfield in the D-I preliminaries on Saturday. A tall order awaits tonight with a 7 o’clock date at No. 1 Hendricken. The Hawks defeated the Clippers back on Feb. 13 (70-54).
In Division III, No. 4 Mount St. Charles and No. 5 Lincoln will meet for the third time this season; each side successfully defended its home-court. The game from the Mounties’ gym will tip at 6:30. Also in D-III on Tuesday, No. 6 Central Falls travels to No. 3 Ponaganset for a 6 p.m. clash.