Hamilton-Wenham remains hot, ousts Watertown

WATERTOWN — The Hamilton-Wenham boys basketball team is hell-bent on proving that its 1-5 start to the season was a mere anomaly.

Markus Nordin and Ryan Monahan recorded double-doubles as the fifth-seeded Generals (15-7) went on the road and edged No. 4 Watertown, 45-41, in a Div. 3 North semifinal Sunday afternoon. Hamilton-Wenham will face St. Mary’s in a sectional semifinal Wednesday night in Burlington.

“This team has been counted out all season long, but they have a ton of heart,” said Hamilton-Wenham coach Mike DiMarino. “We know that in order to win this game, we were going to have to play for the full 32 minutes. We couldn’t have any passengers here, everyone had to contribute, everyone had a job to do.”

Nordin (20 points, 11 rebounds) stepped up big down the stretch, knocking down eight straight free throws. His final two came after Matthew Oliveira knocked down a 3-pointer to cut the deficit to 43-41 with 2.5 seconds left.

Desperate to stop the clock by any means, Watertown took a timeout knowing full well it had none left. Nordin was selected to shoot the technical free throws and he nailed both to account for the final margin of victory.

“I love shooting free throws, it’s my favorite part of the game,” Nordin said. “In practice, before we leave, we have to shoot a free throw and if we miss, we have to run,”

Hamilton-Wenham led from the start and used a 14-0 run to take a 26-11 late in the second quarter. Despite turning the ball over 12 times in the first half (31 overall), the Generals maintained a healthy lead as Watertown made just 5-of-33 attempts from the field. DiMarino knew his team was going to have issues with the Raiders’ relentless full-court pressure.

“We lost our captain and point guard (Ian Coffey) to an injury right before the tournament,” DiMarino said. “Watertown’s defensive pressure is out of this world, they are so quick and aggressive. We just preached that great players have short memories.”

Watertown (16-6) inched back into the game midway through the third quarter. Brennan Cook knocked down a trey and a basket to help cut the deficit to 32-25 by the end of the third quarter. The Raiders got as close as a point on two occasions on 3-pointers by Joseph Griffin and Oliveira, the second one making it 39-38 with 2:40 left.

With Hamilton-Wenham on the ropes, Monahan (10 points, 12 rebounds) delivered a highlight reel defensive play. He soared over the rim to block Adam Patterson’s layup to keep the game at 41-38.

“That was a great play,” DiMarino said. “We don’t have any superstars, but we have guys who battle for one another. They’re an unbelievable group of guys and I’m so blessed to coach them.”

from Boston Herald https://ift.tt/2PC85M7