Junior Achievement: Raptors, Eagles Score Big Wins

(Editor's note: The following information was submitted by administrators and coaches of the Tewksbury Boys Basketball League.)

Senior Division

Knicks 53, Blazers 39
The Knicks played great defense to overcome the previously unbeaten Blazers. Chris Allen led the way in scoring with 18 points, but his defense and blocked shots were the difference. Other key scorers were Sean Derrah with 12, Joe Ogden with 6, and Nick Constantineau with 5. Jimmy Hutchinson and Chris Fothergill played great under the basket, fighting for rebounds and preventing shots. One of the real keys to the game was the ball control and passing by Jeff Donahue, William Ramsey, and Will LeRette. As a team, the Knicks applied tremendous defensive pressure and ball control, but the key to the victory was the unselfish team play by all.

Bulls 55, Bobcats 35

The Bobcats put together a balanced attack scoring half of their points in each of the game’s two halves. However, in the end it wasn’t enough to overtake an aggressive Bulls team. Leading the team with 12 points was Matt Famiglietti who dropped a long range three, and 7 clutch foul shots to keep the game close. Mike Ladderbush followed with 10 points as he pounded the boards inside and pulled down multiple rebounds. Robert Papandrea’s quick outside shooting netted 8 points. Rounding out the scoring for the Bobcats were Paul Salibe 5 points, Dan Turosz and Andrew Carta with 4 points each, and Nick McLaughlin added 2. Matt Cocca, Patrick Leonard, and Steven Lee played great defense helping their team to stay in the game.

Hornets sting the Magic
Ron Mallach and Cam Skinner helped lead the Hornets to an impressive win over the Magic. Ed Duffy clogged the middle and Jared Martin chipped in with aggressive defense. Nick Falcone, Bryan Foti, Ryan Panesitti, Nick Salvato, Josh Gadue, Mike Reznikow, and Patrick O’Brien added to the offensive output.

The Magic played catch up all game. Marty Glynn led all scorers with 15 points. Mark Brooks and Jon Zervas each added 7 points apiece. Matthew Gaman continues to improve with six points of his own. Camden White, Ron Tam and Dylan Bolorinho each scored a bucket. Patrick Poirier and Brenden O'Connor did a great job playing their positions. Bryan Tam and Tim Glynn gave a great effort all game.

TimberWolves 46, Jazz 42
The TWolves were clicking on all cylinders again today against a Jazz team that wouldn't quit. The ‘Wolves held on to win in a high intensity game. High scorers for the TWolves were Tim Donovan with 15 and Blake Hery with 12. Some nice rebounding from Mike Baker and Joe Lalonde, but it took pressure defense from David Morris, Jimmy Quilty, Tommy Madore, and Anthony Payne to seal the win.

The Jazz started slow and found themselves behind by 10 at the half before finding their mojo and pouring it on a talented TWolves team in the 3^rd and 4^th quarters. The comeback effort came up a couple baskets short in the end as the TWolves dug in on defense and secured a well deserved victory. Leading the 2^nd half comeback for the Jazz was the tenacious defensive pressure of David Dempsey, Mack Boucher, Cole Iovine and Kyle Fleury(2 points). Iovine drained 2 nice floating runners and ended with 6 points for the game. Petros Nacopoulos turned some nice defensive stops into 11 of his team-high 14 points in the 2^nd half. Billy Petherbridge had a solid game at both ends and dropped in 8 points. Greg Silva’s efforts kept the Jazz close early-on contributing 4 points. Nick Noel played solid in the paint at both ends against some tough match-ups and muscled his way to 4 points and a bundle of rebounds.
Bucks 40, Lakers 37

The Bucks earned a victory in a close game over a solid Laker team. From the opening tap this was a back and forth game. The point differential was never more than 4points throughout the game. Joey Felix had his best game of the season scoring 9points, but more importantly demonstrating great hustle and working hard on defense matching up on the Lakers Joe Mason. Nick Dulock and Joe Gershman added 7 points each; Lucas Theisen and Mike Boudreau were stellar on defense with several rebounds and steals. Chris Meehan had another solid performance adding 4 points to the cause and also grabbing several rebounds. Ryan Letourneau also had one of his best games of the season scoring his first 2 points of the season, had a great drive to the hoop earning him a trip to the free throw line and several rebounds. Although not evident in scoring column, Peter Murray had another solid performance in the paint with numerous rebounds at both ends of the court. The Bucks went into half time trailing by 4points. In the third quarter the Bucks tried to pull away with Anthony Barinelli scoring 3points and Dylan Bartolomeu draining 2 three pointers, but the Lakers would battle back, and the Bucks were only able to take a slim 2 pt lead going into the fourth quarter. The game came down to the last 4 minutes with the Bucks again trailing by 2 points, the defense stepped up and held the Lakers scoreless down the stretch. Dulock scored 2 of his points in the last 4 minutes and Gershman hit a huge free throw. Andrew Bryan came up with a big offensive rebound and put-back scoring his 2 points of the game and sealing the victory for the Bucks. A great game played by both teams and TBBL at its best.

Rockets catch the Pacers in overtime, 62- 60

The Rockets trailed the Pacers by as many as 13 points in the first half. With 2 minutes left Rockets went on a 8-0 run to pull within 7 points 29-22. In the second half the Rockets came back strong behind the 18 point scoring of John Cave (23points) and Jack Lindsey (6points). As the game came to a close the score was tied at 58. In the OT period the Rockets took the lead on two buckets from Tim Lynch (10points) and John Cave (2points). The Rockets never gave up during the whole game with stars on defense like Andrew Rogers (3points), Chris Catizone (2points), and John Waddell (6points). Andrew Loiselle (6points) Anthony Darrigo (1pt) William Hopkins (3points) and Joe Darrigo (5points) put pressure on the Pacers ball handlers all day.

Intermediate Division

Celtics 44 Hornets 42

The Celtics won the opening jump to kick off the match. First quarter scoring for the Celtics started with two baskets from Garrett Goempel, followed by Domenic Catizone, Alex Regan and Derek Cronis. The first quarter ended with a basket by Jonathan Zurawski and a four-point lead for the Celtics. Alex put a great pass in Josh Snyder’s hands leading to a clean lay-up and two more points to the scoreboard. David Scarpa got a rebound and quickly picked up a basket of his own. Will Small and Christian Bennett setup picks in the second and third quarters enabling the Celtics to maintain possession of the ball and opening up shots by David Scarpa and Anthony McNeil. Christian was fouled in the second quarter and added one to the board. Domenic added to the team's momentum, with three baskets and a steal, putting the Celtics up nine at half time. In the third quarter the Celtics added to the scoring with a swish by Alex and a basket by Garrett. The Hornets began to gain momentum of their own. The Celtics came back with a basket by Josh, a steal by Derek. Christian Bennett and Anthony McNeil were fouled and add three points that brought the quarter to a close with the Celtics leading 36-29. Alex got the Celts going in the fourth quarter with a quick basket, followed by a great steal by Will. Garrett put up his own basket after a steal. With just two minutes left and the score very close, both teams were fighting for the lead. The Hornets tied the game with 1:31 minutes left in the fourth. It was a nail biter for the final ten seconds as Dominic and Anthony led the team to a victory with the final shots. Nice teamwork by all.

The Hornets played a never quit game against the Celtics in a nail biter, but came up one bucket short. After trailing most of the game, they came back to tie the score in the 4^th quarter (40-40). The whole team battled for this one right to the end, but came up just short. The Hornets scoring came from Billy Tamboli 16points, Zachary Karnell 9points, Jack Rose 7points, Chris Zuraski 4points, Paul Farias, Bobby Payne, and Ryan Barry all adding 2 points each. Trevor Breen and Jared Cowles battled for every rebound and loose ball that gave the Hornets a chance in the 4^th quarter. The whole team stepped up big and played well together both offensively and on defense. The Hornets just ran out of time in this hard-fought came against a very good Celtics team.

Bullets over the Nuggets

"Together Everyone Achieves More" is an acronym for TEAM. The Bullets play this past Saturday was just that, providing their best team effort of the season. All eleven players contributed in all aspects of the game, from offense to defense. All eleven players added to the scoring behind team leading scorer Eddie Brenz, 14 points, while Ethan Trudeau added 8 points and TJ Contalonis with 6 points.The team's ball movement, from the dribbling to passing was exceptional, led by Nick Muise, and Shea Hiltz.. The Bullets defensive play was also in excellent form, as Ameen Kalhkorn, Jeff Pierce and Kelvin Nguyen gave their all with several shots blocked and while Ryan Sughrue, Brendan Murray and Corey Indelicato making key steals against a very competitive opponent.

Nuggets 46 Friars 36

The Nuggets got out of the gates quick against the Frairs taking an early 11-0 thanks to the red-hot hand of Sammy Traynor (24 points), but the game was far from over. The Friars clawed and fought back all game but came up a bit short as the Nuggets held on to win 46-36. This was a true team effort as 8 of the 11 Nugget players put points on the board. Joshua Keough (10 points) continues to showcase his skills as a team leader and point guard. David Pesantes (5), Doug Connors (4), Christian Lucchesi (2), Jeffery D'Entremont (2) and Andrew Pacheco (1) all had baskets a key times throughout the game to stem the comeback bid by the Friars. Jonathan Mooney helped dominate the glass on both ends and the tenacious defense of Danny Nguyen, Abhi Bishnu and Dylan Jackson helped keep the Friars offensive players in check. This was a well fought battle by both teams as they begin preparing for the post season play.

Bobcats 49 Jazz 45

In a high scoring offensively played, down to the wire game, the Bobcats came out in front of the Jazz by 4 points as the Jazz continued their efforts to produce more scoring from more players. Scoring for the Jazz were Jared Roane (23) Jackson Roane (6), Ryan Fay (4), Matt Mitchell (4), Evan Surette (4), and Rich Aronson(2). Johnny Melanson, Jimmy Catyb, Billy Catyb , Jack Vasas and Robbie Daniels all provided defensive support and most took shots on net that just didn't fall.

Bucks 22 Eagles 18

 The Bucks came from 8 points behind in the first quarter to tie the game 12 to 12 at the half time break, playing hard and not giving up in their closest game for the Bucks this season. In the second quarter the Bucks made a lot of turnovers giving the Eagles a chance to go ahead by a couple of buckets, but at the end, the great play of James Boucher with rebounding, steals and 7 points put the Eagles away. On offence Andrew Boudreau had 11 points. Alec Diciaccio had 2 points Ricky Tibbetts had 2 points. Outstanding defense from Jonathan Fuller, Jared Ward, James Wink, Robbie Temmallo, Cole Bugley and Cameron Carmichael .

Bobcats 49 Jazz 43

 For the second week in a row the Bobcats were faced with a tough match up against a strong team within the Intermediate Division. Not bothered by this challenge they came out fighting hard and had their best game of the season pulling off a well deserved victory. Guard Matty McLaughlin had the touch early and didn’t stop throughout the game totaling a season high 17 points, which included a half court buzzer beating 3 pointer to put the ‘Cats up at halftime. Center Ryan Casino continued his dominance on the court as he has all season and drove the floor tirelessly to put in 14 points. Phil Borges muscled in 4 long range jump shots with precision accuracy totaling 8 points, and Sean Covel joined in on the fun with two outside swishes tallying up 4 points. Ball control contributed to this win with Leo Frisella, Ryan Nickerson and Akhil Bagul all weaving in and out of the Jazz’s defense to drop in 2 points each. With amazing poise at the foul line Daniel Derosa contributed with 2 points, but they were removed from the total due the referee’s decision after some discussion. Nice Job under pressure! Robert Page and Nolan Higgins came up big on defense with multiple rebounds at key moments to eliminate the Jazz from having second chances. A nice team effort and well deserved win!

Junior Division

Raptors over the Clippers

The Raptors won with a total team effort. They were led with key baskets scored by Cameron Grace and Connor Nugent who both scored and played excellent basketball. Andrew Zampitella scored and had several key rebounds on defense. Kevin Olivieri did an outstanding job on defending under the basket and scoring. Cameron O'Hearn had several key assists and was instrumental in moving the ball around to his teammates. DJ Naughton made some outstanding key shots and had a great game in ball control. Scott Mazzapica had several blocked shots and baskets as he helped the Raptors to victory. The game was won with everyone involved in scoring, rebounding and defense.

Eagles 22 Spurs 12

Vinny Hulme, Logan Singleton, Tony Mannetta, Brad Denis, Andrew Lefebvre, Jacob Brooks, John-Henry Dvorak, Ben Strainge, Shayne Noone and Raymond Humphrey played hard in another exciting game for the Spurs. They jumped out to an early 4 point lead on an unbelievable basket by Humphrey. Hulme, Denis and Strainge all had key hoops but it was not enough to hold off the Eagles.

Hornets over Celtics

The Hornets defeated the Celtics. Kyle Harkins was the leading scorer with 18 points. Braden Hiltz played great defense and scored 14 points. Nicholas Catizone grabbed many rebounds and scored 8 points. Alex Kelleher played with a lot of hustle and scored 6 points. Blake Hiltz played tenacious defense coming up with many steals and added 2 points. Ryan Meuse and Shaun Murphy had many steals and scored 2 points each. Andrew Maclean played great defense and found teammates for open shots. It was a total team effort.

 Mavericks 27 , Sixers 26

In a close game that went down to the final seconds, the Mavericks held off a fourth quarter charge for their 6th victory of the season. The Mavericks had outstanding defense led by Derek Lefler (4 rebounds), Brandon Coolidge (3 rebounds, 2 steals) and Kyle Rogers (3 rebounds). Anthony Miano (2 steals, 1 assist) and Matt Salvato ( 2 rebounds, 2 steals) controlled the offensive flow setting picks and running the offense. The Mavericks’ scoring was led by Michael Lambert (8 points, 3 rebounds), Joe Rosberg (7 points, 10 rebounds, 3 blocks), Kyle Obst (6 points, 4 steals) and Riley Frost (6 points, 2 assists).

Gavin MacDonald was the leading scorer on the Sixers with 16 points. Sean Whelton (4 points), John Keeney (2 points), Nicholas Capiello (2 points), and Michael Flynn (2 points) demonstrated excellent passing and teamwork. Christian MacMillan handled the ball with great skill throughout the game. Key defensive players were Richard Capiello, Mackin MacDonald, Jack Callinan, and Adam Hines who kept the pressure on the Mavericks offense and contributed key rebounds to keep the game score close.

Warriors 22 Cavs 13

The Cavs lost a tough one to the Warriors despite a tremendous defensive effort. Cavs scorers included Matt Manoukian 5points, Nate Wilkinson 2points, Max Doucette 4points, and Kyle Curtin 2points.

Cadet Division

Bulls 18 Hawks 12

The Bulls started strong and then hung on against an energized Hawks team. Bulls lead scorer, Tom Bradley helped the Bulls jump out to a big first quarter lead with 8 of his 16 points. William Ward added a hoop to round out the first quarter and give the Bulls a big halftime lead. Defense was the story for the rest of the game as the Bulls held on against the Hawks comeback attempt. Mikey Bankowski and Patrick Killion played big underneath, ripping down rebounds to limit the Hawks’ opportunities. Their play was matched in the paint by Patrick and Matt Rosemond who shut down the Hawks’ interior offense, forcing them to take outside shots. Perimeter pressure was applied by guards Jack Panilaitis, Mihir Bagul, and Thomas Stanieich, making the Hawks’ fight for every shot. The Bulls put it all together with a complete team effort in this big win.

Led by Captain’s JP Murphy and Anthony Disanto, the Hawks played an overall good game. The Hawks were in this game until the last quarter. Rory Power led the offense with 10 points. Disanto scored a basket. Chase Perault had a good shot opportunity to start the game. JP Murphy was dominant on both end of the court with good shot attempoints and had many defensive rebounds. Perault, Dominic Cohen, Sean Murphy, Sreetej Digumarthi and Mike Cronin played intense defense on the Bulls. Mike Kelleher and Disanto made some key rebounds to keep the game close. Derek Munroe made a key steal that broke up a Bull fast break

Raptors 23, Pistons 14

It was a very close game and the Raptors came up with the win. The Raptors defense was the key to the win with aggressive zone defense. Forwards Ryan Rosenberg, Henry Pestana and Richie Raso played very tough defense causing key turnovers. Forward Cameron Hodgson and guard Michael Wilson had a few critical steals and made great rebounds. The Raptors offense also played tough with guard Tyler Keough contributing 12 points, guard Colby Ward with 6 points and forward Jake Forgione with 5 points. Another very strong game from the Raptors.

Leading scorers for the Pistons were Kalu Olu and Joey Branchaud. Cam Cimmino scored a quick 2 points to start the 2nd quarter, helped by passing from guard Zach Graczyk. Tommy Branchaud played solid point guard, while the defensive playing by Lucas McFadyen, Logan Gallagher and Cam Cimmino helped keep the Raptors within shot. Ryan Briley scored a basket early in the game and played a good first half in the paint as the Pistons’ center. Zachary Hines kept the ball moving and played great defense in the last period holding the Raptors scoring to a minimum

T'Wolves 12 Suns 8

The two teams were very evenly matched throughout the entire game. With two seconds left in the first half, James Kochakian (4 points) handled the inbound pass at half court, took two dribbles, and sank the just over half court shot at the buzzer to tie the game. The T'Wolves carried that momentum into the 2nd half and continued with aggressive defense and rebounding by Justin Flynn, Mike Fowler, and Jack Shreenan. Assist leaders Richard Kramer and Kyle Breen helped contribute to the rest of the scoring by Sean Sears (4 points), Nathan Jones (2 points), and Alex Boudreau (2 points).

The Suns played good defense as they fell short to a good T-wolves team. Sam White and Nick Iannacci did the scoring for the Suns with two points each. All the guards, Joey Pazyra, Doug Renna, Zach Bradley, and Jack Bieren all played solid defense. Paul Tower and Brady Eagan also played good defense as Brady led the team in rebounding with five.

Clippers 23 Sixers 19

 The Clippers squeaked by in the end of a very exciting game to watch. The Sixers had participation from many in the scoring category. Baskets by Diego Monteiro, Max Cummings, Garrett Kingston, Nolan Timmons and Patrick Letourneau. Andrew Timmons, Adam Favreau, Michael Kelly, Dhreuv Kaushal and Michael Duggan all played strongly both supporting the team offensively and defensively. The Sixers continue to pull together as a team, even though defeated, the team spirit is high and the boys had a great game.

KNICKS 24 SONICS 14

The Knicks had one of their best all around efforts of the season and were able to hold off a talented Sonics squad. Will McKay got the offense going with 6 early points and then Justin Murphy got in the act with 6 of his own all coming on putbacks as he worked the offensive glass relentlessly. Jared Gray and Ben Svendson played great defense in the middle to limit the Sonics scoring chances while Cole Duffett and Owen Gilligan kept the ball moving on offense. The Fleming brothers were at their best again as Ethan had 2 points and 4 rebounds while Noah seemed to be everywhere scoring 10 points, grabbing 5 rebounds, and chipping in 5 steals.

The Sonics fell behind 10-2 early due to some strong Knicks defense but hung in there the rest of the way in a back and forth very competitive game. John Beatrice led the Sonics scoring attack with 8 points, Arya Mehrabani, Ryan Keane, and Robert Evangelista all had 2 points each. Jack Balboni, Tyler Strong, Kyle McHugh, and Liam MacDonald played solid defensively and on the defensive boards. Owen Griffin and Kyle Scrooc came up with several good steals and helped moved the ball around finding open teammates and collecting assists.

Celtics 14 Bucks 12

The Celtics played a well-balanced game and came away with the victory over a talented Bucks team. The key to the win was outstanding defense play from the Celtics. Dominic Searles played the bucks tough, using his speed to steal the ball. Connor Moynihan made his presence known under the net coming away with multiple rebounds. Zachary Connolly, Sean Fahey, Robert Chisholm, and Cameron Loder once again proved they can move the ball setting up scoring drives, as well as, shutting down the Bucks offensive opportunities. While also playing strong defense, Thomas Barnelli, Tyler Demers, and Luke Tryder, managed to combine for the teams 14 points.