Tag: Kayden Kelley
2018 Hockomock League Boys Basketball All Stars
Below are the official 2018 Hockomock League Boys Basketball All Stars, selected by the coaches in the league.
Hockomock League MVP
John McCoy, Mansfield
Hockomock League All Stars
Qualeem Charles, Attleboro
Bryant Ciccio, Attleboro
Devin Foster, Canton
Tony Harris, Canton
Brandon Borde, Foxboro
Joe Morrison, Foxboro
Chris Edgehill, Franklin
Paul Mahon, Franklin
Jalen Samuels, Franklin
Tyler Boulter, Mansfield
Sam Hyland, Mansfield
John McCoy, Mansfield
Kayden Kelley, Milford
Jack Spillane, Oliver Ames
Malik Lorquet, Sharon
Cam Andrews, Stoughton
Lens Esquil, Taunton
Hawks Grounded By Marlboro In D2 Central Semis
WORCESTER, Mass. – Milford head coach Paul Seaver had a simple diagnosis of what went wrong against top-seeded Marlboro on Tuesday night.
“We just didn’t hit shots tonight, that’s it,” Seaver said. “They hit shots and we didn’t, that was the story of the game.”
Seaver’s diagnosis was backed up by the numbers as the Hawks shot just 28% from the field (and under 20% from the three-point range) while Marlboro hit nearly half of its shots, picking up a 67-41 win in the D2 Central Semifinals.
For the first four minutes of the game, it looked like Milford would be in good shape on both ends of the court. The Hawks hit on five of their first seven shots — two from junior Brendan White — and one of the misses was converted with an offensive putback, rattling off an 11-3 run.
But on Marlboro’s ensuing trip up the court, Milford senior Kayden Kelley (eight points, five rebounds, three assists) picked up his second foul with 3:33 to go in the first.
And just 30 seconds later, senior Andrew Fraioli was called for his second, sending both of Milford’s big men to the bench. Marlboro took advantage, finishing the last three minutes with an 8-2 run, including a late three that gave the Panthers a 14-13 edge after one.
Brendon Sailer gave the Hawks a boost off the bench, hitting back-to-back 18-foot jumpers, each one putting Milford up by a point.
Sailor’s second jumper came with 7:06 left in the second quarter. Unfortunately, the Hawks didn’t score again in the quarter until 1:53 to go.
In that span, the Hawks went 0-for-8 from the floor, having two of their four three-point shots go halfway down only to rim out. Another two chances were swatted by Marlboro star Chris Doherty (24 points, 13 rebounds).
On the other hand, the Panthers’ offense was finding success, getting a couple of kind rolls in the process. The 15-0 run included two offensive putbacks, a pair of three-pointers – one each from Alex Santos (12 points) and Jordan Oliveira (nine points) and a traditional three-point play from Doherty.
And to make matters worse, Marlboro sank a three at the halftime buzzer although it looked like the shot was still in the shooters’ hands when the buzzer sounded.
“Yeah absolutely [it took the wind out of our sails],” Seaver said of the two buzzer beaters. “But if we hit a couple of other shots it would have been different but they hit shots and we didn’t.”
Similar to the first half, the Hawks came out and connected on their first three-point attempt after the break when Shane Cosquete hit nothing but net. But a cold spell hit the Hawks again.
“I think when we didn’t hit shots we started to get frustrated and that kind of turned into what the final score indicates,” Seaver said.
Milford missed their next three shots and had a pair of turnovers before Sailor found the bottom of the net for two. And on the other end, the Hawks’ defense was still playing well, limiting the Panthers to 10 points while both Fraioli and White had blocks.
But the Panthers came to life over the final two minutes of the third. Marlboro dropped 11 points over the final 2:27, including a pair of threes and a pair of transition buckets.
“They play a zone…they played it all year, they played it tonight…you have to hit your shots against the zone,” Seaver said.
Marlboro led 55-31 after three.
Zach Tammaro (nine points) hit an early three in the fourth to cut it to 19, and connected on another triple with three minutes to go but Milford wouldn’t get within striking distance.
The Hawks lose seven players to graduation, including Kelley – a four-year player.
“He’s been with me for all four years. He was one of the main guys in turning this program around, going from 2-18 four years ago to WPI tonight. I love the kid and I’m going to miss him.”
Milford boys basketball finishes the season 13-9.
Hawks Dominate Second Half To Knock Off Dedham
MILFORD, Mass. — Every team talks about playing its best basketball when the playoffs roll around.
The Milford boys basketball team is accomplishing just that.
The Hawks dominated the second half, allowing just three points in the fourth quarter to earn a 46-31 win over Dedham in the Scarlet Hawk Classic Championship. It marked Milford’s sixth straight win to close the regular season.
“Our defense was just fantastic,” said Milford head coach Paul Seaver of what changed in the second half. “I don’t know how many points they had in the fourth quarter but I know they had 22 at halftime and only 31 to end the game. That’s what changed down the stretch…our defense was that good when it mattered the most.”
Beyond allowing just three points in the fourth, the Hawks allowed a total of just nine points in the entire second half.
“We talked all season about getting to the point of playing our best basketball when it matters the most down the stretch,” Seaver said. “We’ve said it since December. It’s been a process, we lost games we know we could have won. It took a good chunk of the season for us to get to the point where our confidence led to results. We have a lot of momentum going into the tournament.”
Points were at a premium in the first half. A late putback in the final minute from Milford senior Andrew Fraioli (nine points, eight rebounds) had the Hawks ahead 10-8 after eight minutes of play.
Neither offense got in gear in the second quarter either. The teams went back and forth, having ties at 10, 12, 14, 16, 18 and 20.
Junior Brendan White (10 rebounds) scored six of his game-high 13 points in the quarter while both Shane Cosquete (12 points) and Fraioli each had two to keep pace with the Marauders. Dedham’s Brian Tavares hit a midrange floater late to give the visitors a 22-20 lead at halftime.
“I credit Dedham’s defense,” Seaver said. “I thought they did a very good job playing tough, playing physical. It took us a while for us to get any offensive flow. Even when we did get to that point, it was a couple of guys hitting a couple of big shots that kind of opened things up for us. Usually, it’s good defense that fuels offense and that was the case in the second half.”
Dedham extended its lead to 26-22 at the midway point of the third quarter, but the Hawks finally got the momentum boost it needed. Senior Zach Tamarro took a feed from Cosquete and drained a three, Milford’s first triple since senior Matt Nickerson hit one early in the first quarter.
That three sparked what turned into a 10-2 run for the Hawks over the final 3:16 of the third quarter.
Kayden Kelley (13 rebounds) grabbed an offensive rebound and converted a putback to give Milford a 27-26 lead. Two possessions later, after Dedham regained the lead, Tammaro made the extra pass to White for a three-pointer. White scored on a nice cut to the basket, giving Milford a 32-28 edge heading into the fourth.
Free throws from Cosquete and Fraioli were answered by two free throws from Dedham’s Michael Mansour. Holding a 36-30 lead with five minutes to play, the Hawks put the game to bed with a 10-1 run to end the game.
Tamarro dropped in a floater after a nice shot fake, Cosquete drained a three right before the shot clock buzzer and Fraioli scored down low on a feed from Cosquete. Cosquete put an exclamation point on the win with another triple late in the shot clock.
Milford boys basketball (12-8) will now await the tournament seeds, which will be released on Friday. The Hawks could be the third, fourth, or fifth seed based on results posted online. Milford will likely be in a tiebreaker with Grafton and Medfield, with names drawn out of a hat to break the tie. If the Hawks get the third or fourth seed, they will have a home game. The win over Dedham secured the Hawks would be in the three-way tiebreaker.
“We talked about getting a home game. We’ve been following along with everything over the past couple of weeks,” Seaver said. “We have a two-out-of-three shot to get a home game. It was a goal of this team and they did it, they put themselves in position. Now we have to get better at practice and be ready for wherever we play.”
Monday’s Schedule & Scoreboard – 02/19/18
Today’s games are listed below.
Boys Basketball
Attleboro, 60 @ North Attleboro, 38 – Final – Click here for a recap of this game.
Foxboro, 56 vs. Bishop Feehan, 36 – Final – Foxboro senior Joe Morrison hit three three-pointers in the fourth quarter, helping the Warriors pull away from the visiting Shamrocks. Morrison also scored 12 of his game-high 25 points in the second quarter while the Foxboro defense limited Feehan to just four points in the frame, taking a 27-15 lead at half. Bobby Harrison added 15 points in the win.
Franklin, 76 vs. Tech Boston, 67 – Final – Click here for a recap of this game.
King Philip, 65 vs. Falmouth, 66 – Final (OT)
Mansfield, 69 vs. Brockton, 64 – Final – Mansfield senior Johnny McCoy poured in a career-high 35 points to lead the Hornets to a comeback win against the highly touted Boxers. Brockton held a 37-31 lead at halftime and took a 55-54 advantage into the fourth quarter. Mansfield outscored the Boxers 15-9 in the final frame. McCoy hit four three-pointers and went 13-for-19 from the line with five steals. Justin Vine added eight points while Damani Scott (five rebounds) and Ryan Otto each had seven points.
Milford, 74 vs. Tantasqua, 65 – Final – Milford had a dominant third quarter, pouring in 26 points in the frame to turn a five-point lead at halftime (30-25) into a 56-42 advantage heading into the fourth quarter. Junior Brendan White had a team-high 16 points, senior Zach Tammaro added 12 points and Andrew Fraioli finished with 11 points. Kayden Kelley had a double-double for the Hawks with 10 points and 11 rebounds.
Oliver Ames, 57 @ Walpole, 49 – Final – Oliver Ames seniors Jack Spillane and Matt Muir each dropped 23 points to lead the Tigers to the Walpole Hoop Classic Championship. The Tigers built a 32-23 lead at halftime with Muir, who notched a career-high, hitting three triples. Spillane and Noah Fitzgerald were named to the all-tournament team.
Stoughton, 76 vs. Lincoln-Sudbury, 53 – Final – Stoughton senior Cam Andrews dropped 25 points and classmate Colin Sanda added 15 points to lead the Black Knights to a win over Lincoln-Sudbury. The Black Knights will play host Waltham in the final of the Jake n Joe’s Basketball Cup on Tuesday at 7:00.
Girls Basketball
North Attleboro, 44 @ Attleboro, 56 – Final – Sam Pierce led the Bombardiers to the non-league win with a career-high 27 points. Jordyn Lako, Mackenzie Roberts, and Nyah Thomas each pulled down nine rebounds for Attleboro. Julia Santos was North’s top scorer with 12.
Foxboro, 66 vs. Hanover, 59 – Final – Click here for a Recap from this game.
King Philip, 43 vs. Needham, 60 – Final
Mansfield, 60 vs. Marlboro, 21 – Final – The Hornets turned on the defense in the third quarter, holding Marlboro to only three points, and scored 23 points themselves to break the game open. Ann Maher scored 16 points, knocking down five threes, for Mansfield, while Maggie Danehy added 10. Erin Daniel, Meg Hill, Sydney Mulkern, and Kara Bendanillo each added six points apiece for the Hornets. Mansfield will face Lowell in the tournament final after the Red Raiders upset Coyle.
Stoughton, 52 vs. Norwood, 38 – Final – Aliyah Wright scored a game-high 20 points to lead the Black Knights, who closed out the regular season by winning 11 of their final 12 games. Stoughton, which held Norwood to only two points in the first quarter and seven in the opening half, also got 12 points from Val Whalen and nine points and 13 rebounds from Jordan Motley.
Taunton, 56 @ Durfee, 47 – Final – The Tigers closed out the season with a non-league road win, after rallying from a 15-point second half deficit. Kelsey White paced Taunton with 15 points. Jaelyn and Sonya Fernandez each scored 11 for the Tigers, Hannah Moniz added nine, and Lily Patneaude had eight.
Boys Hockey
Foxboro, 2 vs. East Bridgewater, 3 – Final
Franklin, 3 vs. LaSalle Academy, 4 – Final
King Philip, 1 vs. Norwood, 3 – Final
Oliver Ames, 0 vs. North Reading, 5 – Final
Girls Hockey
Canton, 6 vs. Whitman-Hanson/Silver Lake, 2 – Final – Junior Lauren Fitzpatrick recorded four points to held the Bulldogs skate past Whitman-Hanson. Fitzgerald scored hat trick and had one assist in the win.
King Philip, 3 @ Natick, 6 – Final
Stoughton, 0 @ Dover-Sherborn/Hopkinton, 7 – Final
Friday’s Schedule & Scoreboard – 02/16/18
Today’s games are listed below.
Boys Basketball
Attleboro, 70 @ Taunton, 45 – Final – Attleboro’s offense was clicking on Friday night, shooting over 60% from the field in a win over the Tigers. With the win, Attleboro qualifies for the state tournament. The Bombardiers were 29-for-48 from the field, including eight three-pointers. Sophomore Bryant Ciccio had a career-high 24 points along with seven assists, Kevin Velazquez and senior Nate Douglas each added 13 points apiece and sophomore Qualeem Charles had six points and 13 rebounds.
Stoughton, 56 @ Canton, 65 – Final – Canton added to its lead after each of the first three quarters to beat Stoughton and clinch a share of the Davenport division title, the program’s first Hock title since 1992. The Bulldogs led 11-8 after one, 32-26 at halftime and 47-37 heading into the fourth. Senior Jake Verille scored a career-high 20 points while classmate Austin Maffie poured in 20 points and hauled in 10 rebounds to pace Canton. Colin Sanda had 15 points and four assists for the Black Knights.
North Attleboro, 38 @ Foxboro, 56 – Final
King Philip, 49 @ Franklin, 62 – Final – Franklin pulled away in the fourth quarter to hold off an upset attempt from King Philip. The Panthers led 36-35 going into the final period and scored 26 points to secure the win. Senior Paul Mahon paced Franklin with 21 points while junior Jalen Samuels added 17 points.
Mansfield, 59 @ Oliver Ames, 48 – Final
Milford, 72 @ Sharon, 55 – Final – Milford scored 45 points in the first half, running away with a win over a division foe on the road. Junior Brendan White scored a game-high 24 points, Andrew Fraioli (12 points, 10 rebounds) and Kayden Kelley (10 points, 12 rebounds) both recorded double-doubles and Zach Tammaro chipped in with 13 points. Sharon senior Malik Lorquet scored a team-high 20 points for the Eagles.
Girls Basketball
Taunton, 42 @ Attleboro, 43 – Final – Jordyn Lako hit a go-ahead free throw with eight seconds left and Liv McCall sealed the win with a steal three seconds later. Sam Pierce scored 14 points to lead the Bombardiers, while Nyah Thomas added eight. Hannah Moniz was Taunton’s top scorer with 10 points.
Canton, 48 @ Stoughton, 49 – Final – Click here for a Recap and Photo Gallery from this game.
Foxboro, 66 @ North Attleboro, 41 – Final – Lily Sykes scored a team-high 23 points for the Warriors, who capped off the program’s first perfect season in the Hockomock League.
Franklin, 57 @ King Philip, 41 – Final
Oliver Ames, 49 @ Mansfield, 42 – Final – Oliver Ames pulled away late, breaking open a 34-34 game by going 5-for-5 from the line and scoring off its defense down the stretch to earn a split of the season series with the Hornets. Abby Reardon and Caroline Flynn each came up with key free throws during that stretch. Kayla Raymond led the way for the Tigers with 14 points and Erin Holmberg added 11. Maggie Danehy had 13 and Mady Bendanillo had 10 for Mansfield.
Sharon, 55 @ Milford, 62 – Final – Emily Piergustavo celebrated senior night with a career-high in points and a triple-double to help the Hawks close out the regular season with a win. Piergustavo scored 27 points, pulled down 10 rebounds and dished out 10 assists. Julie Rabinowitz scored 14 for Milford, knocking down four three-pointers. Emma Eberhardt was Sharon’s top scorer with 27 points, while Telishya Herbert had 15 and Kaitlyn Wallace has 11.
Friday’s Schedule & Scoreboard – 02/09/18
Today’s games are listed below.
Boys Basketball
Oliver Ames, 57 @ Attleboro, 46 – Final
Sharon, 58 @ Canton, 86 – Final – Canton senior Tony Harris poured in 26 of his 33 points in the first half and junior Devin Foster finished with 26 points as the Bulldogs picked up a big win over Sharon. Sharon sophomore Aidan Kane had a career-high 14 points for the Eagles.
Foxboro, 51 @ Milford, 59 – Final – Foxboro raced out to a 9-0 but Milford stormed back to take a slim lead after one. Foxboro regained its advantage at halftime (33-28) but the Hawks struck back, outscoring the Warriors 15-6 in the third to lead 43-39. Kayden Kelley (10 rebounds), Andrew Fraioli (11 rebounds) and Brendan White all had 15 points apiece for Milford. Joe Morrison led the Warriors with a career-high 28 points.
Franklin, 47 @ Mansfield, 59 – Final – Click here for a recap of this game.
Taunton, 68 @ King Philip, 36 – Final
Stoughton, 51 @ North Attleboro, 42 – Final – Stoughton had a strong opening quarter and used the lead it created in the period to beat North. The Knights outscored the Rocketeers 17-8 in the opening quarter, the teams both combined for 34 points each over the next three quarters. Stoughton’s Cam Andrews led all scorers with 22 points while junior Owen Nassaney had 13 points for North.
Girls Basketball
Attleboro, 41 @ Oliver Ames, 52 – Final – Oliver Ames’ Kayla Raymond scored 30 points, hitting the 1,000 point mark for her career in the win. Raymond, who is the ninth female player in OA history to reach the milestone, also had 11 rebounds and four steals. Check out the video below.
Congrats to Kay Ray for scoring the 1000th point of her career tonight!!! Way to go! pic.twitter.com/o7QtA3Fgnc
— Bill Matthews (@OAHSTigersports) February 10, 2018
Canton, 53 @ Sharon, 36 – Final – The Bulldogs moved within one game of clinching a playoff berth with the road win against the Eagles. Hannah Jerrier once again paced Canton with a double-double of 22 points and 12 rebounds, while Erin Devine chipped in with 12 points, eight rebounds, and six blocks. Emma Eberhardt led the Eagles with 14 and Evanjuline Elisma added seven.
Milford, 26 @ Foxboro, 80 – Final – Ashley Sampson led the Warriors with 21 points, while Lily Sykes and Shannon Smally each added 10 for Foxboro, which continued its unbeaten run through the league. All 10 players scored for the Warriors.
Mansfield, 62 @ Franklin, 48 – Final – Click here for a Recap and Photo Gallery from this game.
King Philip, 71 @ Taunton, 61 – Final
North Attleboro, 46 @ Stoughton, 57 – Final – Stoughton bounced back from its loss to Stoughton behind Val Whalen’s 19 points and 16 rebounds, her second double-double against the Rocketeers this season, and 17 points from Aliyah Wright. With the win, the Black Knights get back to .500 on the season.
Boys Hockey
King Philip, 1 @ North Attleboro, 2 – Final
Girls Hockey
Stoughton @ Plymouth, 4:30
Tuesday’s Schedule & Scoreboard – 02/06/18
Today’s games are listed below.
Boys Basketball
Attleboro, 46 @ Mansfield, 64 – Final
Canton, 44 @ Milford, 45 – Final – Milford junior Brendan White hit a three with 0.4 seconds left while being fouled, elevating the Hawks to a win after a wild final minute. Milford had a 42-40 lead with under 30 seconds to play and even got a stop but a jump ball gave Canton the ball back. Devin Foster (17 points) hit three free throws after being fouled to take a 43-42 lead, and after a Milford turnover, Foster hit another free throw to give the Dogs a 44-42 lead. But White took a pass from Kayden Kelley (10 points, 10 rebounds) and hit the winning shot while being fouled. Andrew Fraioli added 11 points and 12 rebounds for Milford while Tony Harris had 16 points for Canton.
Foxboro, 59 @ Stoughton, 53 – Final – Foxboro hit six three-pointers in a 30-point third quarter, turning a 32-16 deficit at halftime into a 46-46 tie heading into the fourth quarter. Bobby Harrison scored five of his team-high 15 points in the fourth quarter while Joe Morrison added 12 points and Matt Rongione had 11 points, including three triples in the third. Anthony Mollica added five of his eight points in the fourth quarter for Foxboro. Stoughton senior Cam Andrews had a team-high 18 points while senior Steevens Phelimond had a career-high 16 points for the Knights.
Franklin, 63 @ Taunton, 51 – Final – Click here for a recap of this game.
Oliver Ames, 60 @ King Philip, 68 – Final
Sharon, 45 @ North Attleboro, 58 – Final – North Attleboro senior Chad Peterson returned from injury and scored a career-high 23 points, draining seven three-pointers to lead the Rocketeers to a win over Sharon. Peterson hit four triples in the opening quarter, two more in the second and another in the fourth. North led 34-27 at halftime and 43-38 at the end of three. The Rocketeers clinched the game with a 15-7 fourth quarter. Josh Montague added 11 points for Big Red while Jacob Petersen finished with eight points. Sharon’s Malik Lorquet had 19 points, 10 rebounds, and nine blocks while Alex Kaufmann added 14 points.
Girls Basketball
Mansfield, 58 @ Attleboro, 40 – Final – Meg Hill had her 12th double-double of the season with 21 points and 12 rebounds and she also added four blocks. Hill is now seven points shy of 1,000 for her career. Ann Maher and Sydney Mulkern each added nine points for the Hornets. Sam Pierce paced Attleboro with 11 points and Liv McCall added eight.
Milford, 42 @ Canton, 38 – Final
Stoughton, 19 @ Foxboro, 74 – Final – Foxboro went on a 17-0 run after the opening basket by Stoughton to take control and added a 10-0 run to close out the first half. Ashley Sampson was the game’s top scorer with 18 points, while Grace Tamulionis added 16 points and 10 rebounds for the Warriors. Foxboro also got 12 points from Lily Sykes and nine points from Abby Hassman. Val Whalen led the Black Knights with six.
Taunton, 42 @ Franklin, 69 – Final
King Philip, 45 @ Oliver Ames, 61 – Final – Oliver Ames senior Kayla Raymond continued her stellar play this season, scoring 31 points and hauling in 10 rebounds to led the Tigers to a win at home. Alex Sheldon added nine points and 14 rebounds while Erin Holmberg chipped in with eight points.
North Attleboro, 47 @ Sharon, 24 – Final
Gymnastics
Mansfield, 146.8 @ Oliver Ames, 142.1 – Final
Attleboro Grounds Hawks With Second Half Comeback
MILFORD, Mass. – It was a tale of two halves in a crossover matchup between Milford and Attleboro boys basketball. The Hawks started hot but it was the Bombardiers that finished strong.
Big Blue overcame an 11-point deficit at halftime with a stellar third quarter and then finished the job in the second half, finishing the game off with an 8-0 run over the final two minutes to beat the Hawks, 59-51.
“I think the difference in the second half was we did a good job of pressuring their guards and we did a better job in the post,” said Attleboro head coach Mark Houle. “Their post players are very talented, Kelley is very talented and Fraioli is a big talented kid that takes up a lot of space, sets good screens. Their high-low really hurt us really so in the second half we did a better job of dropping our big in the paint and kind of forcing them to take an outside shot. It could have hurt us but it ended up helping us in the long run because we got multiple stops and that’s what we needed to get.”
The fourth quarter featured plenty of momentum swings but the Bombardiers put an exclamation point on the comeback with a couple of big plays in the final minutes.
A putback from sophomore Qualeem Charles (10 points, 16 rebounds) and a pull up jumper just inside the free throw line from Bryant Ciccio (nine points) gave Attleboro an early five-point lead, but Milford chipped away with four straight points from junior Brendan White (17 points) to cut the deficit to one.
Senior Nate Douglas drained a three to get the lead back to four and then hit one of two free throws to take a 50-45 lead. Milford’s Kayden Kelley (11 points, 15 rebounds) scored four straight points, taking feeds from White and Andrew Fraioli (eight points, five rebounds) on slips to the basket to again cut it down to one.
Velazquez came up with another steal but was fouled, and hit one of two free throws to extend the lead to two. Fraioli answered immediately with a bucket while being fouled to tie the game, but couldn’t convert the free throw to take a lead.
Tied 51-51, Attleboro put together its best stretch to win the game. Immediately following Fraioli’s tying bucket, Charles scored in traffic down low to regain the lead. Milford missed a three, Dom Victor (10 points, seven rebounds) hauled in the rebound and hit one of two free throws after being fouled.
Despite missing the second free throw, Charles came across the paint to grab the board. Attleboro called timeout, and out of the break, hit a huge shot.
Mason Houle and Douglas played catch as the shot clock ticked down. With just a few seconds remaining, Houle went in to Charles in the post, sucking the defense in. Charles returned the pass to Houle with just a couple of seconds on the shot clock, and the junior could have forced a contested three, but instead made one extra pass to Douglas in the corner. The senior calmly buried a three, giving Attleboro a 57-51 lead.
“We’ve been stressing at practice, especially recent, the extra pass gets us that great look, an uncontested look,” Houle said of the play. “An inside-outside look, and then the pass to the corner and Nate Douglas hit a really big three for us. It gave us a lot of energy, and in this game [six points] felt like a cushion. It might have been our biggest lead of the game at the time and it put pressure on them to make a play.”
Victor picked off a pass two plays later and went in along, finishing with a two-handed slam to put an exclamation point on the win.
“We wanted to be team tough tonight and that means doing the right things for our team, for our teammates,” Houle said. “In the flow of the game, it’s not always going to be easy. There’s going to be runs on both sides. I was proud of the toughness we had as a team. They came right back and tied it and we showed toughness and went right back down to take the lead.”
After being outrebounded 30-25 through three quarters, the Bombardiers had a 12-8 advantage in the final frame.
“Our key is always rebounding and we did a better job of it in the second half,” Houle said. “I think overall pressuring the guards was key, it kind of got us into a good defensive rhythm. Then we were able to get out on some breaks, got some transition baskets and that gave us some energy. Our energy in the second half throughout the whole second half was very good. “
The hosts came out red-hot in the opening quarter, hitting four of their first six attempts from behind the arc and shooting 50% from the field to build an early double-digit lead, and a 14-point advantage late in the quarter.
A late three from Ciccio cut the deficit to 11 at the end of one, and the teams played an even second period. Milford led by as much as 15 (25-10) at the midway point of the period, but Attleboro outscored the Hawks 11-5 the rest of the way to keep the deficit the same at halftime as it was after one.
Momentum swung in favor of the visitors in the third quarter. Attleboro sophomore Tim Callahan bookended the Bombardiers’ 19-6 surge in the period with a pair of three’s. An inbounds play on the baseline from Ciccio to Douglas resulted in a traditional three-point play.
Trailing by 10, Douglas hit a pair of free throws, Kevin Velazquez drained a three then two plays later, stole a pass and went in for an easy layup. The teams traded a pair of misses before Victor hit two free throws to make it a one-point game.
Fraioli converted a putback to extend the lead back to three but Victor drove strong to the basket for two, and Callahan drained another three off a feed from Charles to give Attleboro a 42-40 lead after three.
“Playing Milford is always tough, Coach Seaver does a terrific job,” Houle said. “Their kids play hard and they have a recipe to win every single night. They have tough bigs, they can shoot it, so we knew coming in it wouldn’t be an easy game…there’s never an easy game in this league. We knew coming in we had to play well and fortunately, we played very well in the second half.”
Attleboro boys basketball (6-4 Hockomock, 9-4 overall) returns to action on Sunday to take on Bishop Feehan at 3:00. Milford (4-6, 6-7) will try to snap its current two-game skid on Tuesday when it travels to Mansfield.
Player of the Week – Kayden Kelley, Milford Basketball
By HockomockSports.com Staff
Milford senior Kayden Kelley has been selected as the HockomockSports.com Player of the Week, presented by Morse Insurance, for Jan. 14 through Jan. 20. Kelley is the 16th player selected for the 2017-18 school year and sixth player chosen during the winter season.
Kelley, a senior forward, recorded three double-doubles this week to help the Hawks win three games and move above .500 on the season (one of the losses is an exclusion game). Two of the wins came in the league, as Milford jumped into third place in the Davenport division. Thanks to a 3-0 week, Milford is now 6-5 overall and 4-4 in the league.
“Kayden continues to provide the anchor for us down low and on the glass,” said Milford head coach Paul Seaver. “He’s the type of player who simply continues to improve every day throughout the season”
The week started with 10 points and 13 rebounds against North Attleboro, as the Hawks went on the road to earn an important league win. On Friday, Kelley scored 13 and pulled down 14 boards in a win against Sharon and he capped the week on Saturday night with 12 points and 14 rebounds against neighboring Hopedale. Kelley is averaging 10.5 points per game and now has seven double-doubles this season.
The Player of the Week, presented by Morse Insurance, is selected by the HockomockSports.com staff. Nominations can be submitted throughout the week up until Saturday night at midnight. There may be a poll posted on every Sunday with the nominations. The results of the poll influence the selection but do not strictly dictate the decision.
