For the second straight season, the Chieftains have swept the Panthers and been crowned Northeast Conference champions after an electric 58-55 win on Monday night.
Both teams had this game circled on the calendar all season and were eager to play in front of fans, as in their last meeting, they were robbed of that opportunity due to online banter that led the administration to ban students from attending.
Despite losing badly to Masco around a month ago, the Panthers came into this game much more prepared, led by last year’s NEC MVP Jacob Klass (19 points). Unfortunately for Klass, he had to deal with the tenacious defense of senior guard Cal “Off-Night” Weidman.
Stop. Score. Stop.
That’s the motto second-year coach Jaycob Morales has preached to his team over and over again this season, and this game couldn’t have embodied it much better. After Masco sent a double team at Klass with under a minute remaining, junior captain Thomas Denton (16 points) jumped the passing lane and went coast-to-coast for a huge bucket to put Masco up five. Then, with 13 seconds left, Klass and Weidman were isolated on an island, with Klass looking to tie the game with a three. Klass tried to shoot over Weidman, but the shot never left his hand as Weidman stuck to him like white on rice, resulting in Masco ball with 0.4 seconds left.
“I knew Klass wasn’t going to take a two, so I played aggressively and predicted the step-back,” said Weidman. “I sat on it, threw my hand up, and got a whole hand on the ball.”
Weidman has covered the best player on nearly every team Masco has faced this year and has proven to be indispensable on the court. He’ll face his toughest task yet tonight against Salem guard Elian Rodriguez.
“What I do on the defensive end is just part of what we do as a team,” said Weidman. “My big men in the middle and the other guards do a great job as well. Every time I get beat, I know I have help behind me, which is a great feeling. Morales has a lot of trust in me, and knowing that gives me confidence to play my role.”
The Chieftains’ size and ability to get the ball inside proved too tall a task for Beverly to handle. The big three of senior captain Jimmy Farrell, senior big man Jamason Vella, and Denton combined for 53 of Masco’s 58 points.
In the second quarter, Vella (18 points) was a man among boys in the paint. He dominated inside with spin moves and sheer power, working his way to the rim with either hand. Vella scored 10 of his 14 first-half points in the second quarter and was key in giving Masco a 30-24 lead at the break.
Farrell led all scorers with 19 points, knocking down a pair of triples and attacking the rim in the fourth quarter. Denton also came alive after halftime, using his size to score efficiently in the paint.
“Throughout the game, every time one of us caught the ball on the wing, one of our bigs would fight for position, using the pass to our advantage,” said Farrell. “We ran a lot of action through our high-post guys and dump-downs to our bigs, which was working well. When the focus is on our bigs, it forces the defense to turn their heads, and that allows our guys at the three-point line to cut and get open lanes.”
With the win over Beverly, Masco has been crowned NEC champions for the second year in a row.
“It’s incredible. After not coming close in my freshman and sophomore years, my junior and senior years have felt really sweet,” said Farrell. “Last year was a first-time experience, and it felt amazing and rewarding after all the hard work. This year, we stuck with the same mentality and used our experience to our advantage. The work we put in every day, with very few days off, makes this back-to-back extremely rewarding and shows that if you work hard enough, you can do it. It’s a team effort — our whole team, one through sixteen. Every guy works as hard as he can every day, and we take pride in that.”
Down the stretch, it wasn’t the offense that propelled Masco to the win — it was the defense. When a team’s two best players have to deal with Weidman and senior guard Ryan Richardson, it’s exhausting.
“We’ve been consistent in our defensive mindset,” said Morales. “We make it difficult for teams to control the game on that end of the floor. We focus on controlling what we can control. Take care of the ball, get it inside, and play from there. Play as a unit and handle all aspects of the game, that’s what makes us a great team and a great program.”
With the win over the Panthers, the Chieftains improve to 15-1 on the season and now prepare for one of their biggest games yet as they tip off against the Salem Witches, currently second in Division 3.