MC has shot at 3-peat
Lancers survive SB rally; ORR runs by Pittsfield
After the final buzzer sounded, Ben Howard knelt at midcourt with his hands over his head. It was a moment for the Malden Catholic junior to let out a big sigh of relief and process what just happened.
Seconds prior, Howard nervously watched Somerset Berkley’s Mason Medeiros attempt a potential winning 3-pointer at the buzzer. But when the shot clanged off the front iron, the topseeded Lancers were finally able to let out their emotions after surviving, 50-48, the No. 4 Raiders in Monday’s thrilling Division 2 boys’ basketball state semifinal at UMass Boston.
“When that shot went up it was like, ‘God, please don’t make it,’ ” said Howard, who posted a team-high 16 points and nine rebounds. “I knew we had to get a stop there. After he missed, I just thanked God.”
After playing the state’s most difficult schedule during the regular season, Malden Catholic (15-9) has rattled off eight straight wins as it looks to capture a third straight D2 state title this weekend at Tsongas Center. The Lancers will face the winner of Tuesday’s 7 p.m. semifinal between No. 7 Sharon and No. 14 Bedford.
“This group has never lost a postseason game,” said Malden Catholic coach John Walsh. “Hopefully we can close out, but it’s incredible what our kids have achieved.”
Malden Catholic dominated most of Monday’s matchup and entered the fourth quarter in control, leading, 42-31. Somerset Berkley roared back. Using a full-court press, the fourth-seeded Raiders relied on steals and timely scoring from Medeiros (16 points) to embark on an 11-0 run and cut the deficit to 46-44 with 1:44 left.
Drexler Pierre and Matt Gaffney sank clutch free throws for MC, pushing the lead back to 5045 with 18 seconds left. However, the Raiders had one last flurry as guard Brendan McDonald stole an in-bounds pass and drained a 3-pointer from the right wing. Then, Howard missed a pair of free throws.
Somerset Berkley (21-3) called timeout and drew up a play for the sharp-shooting Medeiros. With 1.9 seconds left, the senior guard caught the ball amid two Lancer defenders on the left wing and rose for a clean look at the buzzer that came up just short.
“We just don’t fold and it was a great way to show how our kids have handled adversity all season,” said Somerset Berkley coach Bob Slater, whose team tied the program record for wins in a season. “We’re very proud of this group.”
Messiah Johnson added 12 points and eight rebounds.
“When we lost games during the regular season, people didn’t think we’d make it this far,” said Howard. “We just wanted this. We need another state championship.”
Division 3 State
Old Rochester 82, Pittsfield 72 — After being eliminated in the state semifinals a year ago, the second-seeded Bulldogs (21-4) exorcised their demons at Worcester State by outrunning the No. 3 Generals (18-6) to advance to the Division 3 final. It’s the Bulldogs’ first state final trip since 2015.
Junior Zack Mourao led with 27 points, and senior John Butler added 26 points and 11 rebounds. The two took over in the third quarter, with each supplying 10 points as the Bulldogs stretched their lead from 8 at the half to 18 after three.
Junior Malachi Perry paced Pittsfield with 20 points, willing the Generals back into the game in the fourth with crafty drives to the rim and an emphatic slam on the break.
But the Bulldogs’ lead, which ballooned to 22 at its largest, proved too much to overcome.
The Bulldogs fell to St. Mary’s in last year’s semifinal and returned just one starter from that team. They found a way to exceed last year’s finish with the new group.
“Getting by this round, especially against a very athletic Pittsfield team, is very rewarding,” Old Rochester coach Steve Carvalho said. “It’s not easy to get back.”
Senior Chase Besancon added 17 for Old Rochester.