Basketball tournament, my how we missed you.
After COVID eliminated the hoops postseason a year ago, it’s back, and not only is it back, but local teams are primed to steal the show.
The tournament promises to be a whirlwind and you won’t want to miss a minute, so here’s what to expect:
On to the quarterfinals
Cape Elizabeth’s Evan Reeves goes up for two of his game-high 16 points in Tuesday’s preliminary round win over Wells. Derek Davis / Portland Press Herald
Cape Elizabeth’s boys’ team got things started Tuesday night when the sixth-ranked Capers welcomed No. 11 Wells for a Class B South preliminary round contest.
Cape Elizabeth never trailed, shot to a quick 14-3 lead and was up, 17-12, after one quarter, as 6-foot-8 junior Evan Reeves scored six points in a stat sheet stuffing frame. The Capers then held Wells scoreless for over six minutes in the second period and, by halftime, enjoyed a 29-19 advantage. The Warriors scored the first basket of the second half, but Cape Elizabeth then broke it open with a 12-2 run, and by the end of the third quarter, the Capers led, 43-28, before going to a 58-43 triumph.
Reeves had 16 points, 13 rebounds, seven assists and three blocked shots, and Owen Tighe added 14 points.
“We expected a tougher game tonight, 100%,” said senior Jake Frame, who scored eight points. “We know Wells is very well-coached. No matter how much you beat them in the regular season, they always come back strong for the playoffs.”
“Coming in, we knew it would be harder than last time,” Reeves said. “We were able to pull away when it got close. I think our defense is great. Stuff didn’t come as well on offense, so we kept it together on defense.”
“I told the guys all week that the Wells team we’d see tonight would be a much different team than what we saw in December and they were,” Cape Elizabeth coach Jeff Mitchell added. “Troy does a tremendous job building them up all year. They gave us a fight tonight and it was never really comfortable.”
Cape Elizabeth (12-7) will battle No. 3 York (13-2) in the Class B South quarterfinals at 4 p.m. at the Portland Exposition Building. The Capers have won seven of 10 previous playoff meetings, with a 59-43 win in the 2016 Class A South quarterfinals the most recent. In the regular season meeting, Cape Elizabeth lost at York, 58-38, Dec. 17.
“We have our work cut out for us against York,” Mitchell said. “After our first game, I had a feeling we’d see them again. That was a really frustrating loss for us. We played terribly. It was our lowest-scoring game of the year. The guys will be focused and excited to get another crack at them. We’ll have a game plan ready and hopefully it will be more of a battle than it was down there.”
In Class AA South, South Portland is the favorite after capping a 17-1 regular season with a 55-37 home victory over Portland last Thursday. In that one, JP Estrella had 24 points, including four powerhouse dunks, 16 rebounds and four blocked shots; Jaelen Jackson added 14 points; and Owen Maloney finished with 11 as the Red Riots broke it open in the second half.
“I started off pretty bad,” Estrella said. “I missed a bunch of 3s in the first half, but after hearing the ‘overrated’ chants, I had to step up after that. I just tried to get us some momentum. We got a couple stops and some easy baskets and we went on a run.”
“We knew (Portland would) slow the game down and it would be a bloodbath, but once we pounded the ball in the middle and pressed them and put JP up top, it gave them trouble and it gave us momentum,” Maloney said. “He makes it a lot easier for everyone else. He’s just fun to watch.”
“It’s great to play Portland,” South Portland coach Kevin Millington added. “Portland, Deering and Cheverus are our rivals. We played one game at Deering, didn’t play Cheverus, so playing Portland the final game at home, it felt great in front of this crowd. It was a tournament-type game that was good for us.”
The win was the 100th for Millington in his seven seasons at South Portland (against just 33 losses).
“It means I’ve had really good players here,” Millington said.
The top-seeded Red Riots hosted No. 8 Noble (0-17) in the Class AA South quarterfinals Thursday. South Portland easily won both regular season meetings, 76-32 at home Dec. 10 and 72-32 in North Berwick Feb. 1. The teams had no playoff history.
Scarborough finished 4-14 and seventh in Class AA South after closing with a 61-45 home loss to Deering. The Red Storm were at No. 2 Thornton Academy (11-6) in the quarterfinals Wednesday. Scarborough lost both regular season meetings, 58-28 at Saco Dec. 14 and 55-42 at home Jan. 6. The Golden Trojans took the only prior playoff encounter, 67-40, in the 2019 Class AA South semifinals.
Red Storm ready
Scarborough’s Caroline Hartley blocks a shot during last week’s win at Deering. Derek Davis / Portland Press Herald
On the girls’ side, in Class A South, Scarborough finished a better-than-anticipated 14-4 regular season last Thursday with a come-from-behind 45-32 victory at Deering. The Red Storm managed just 22 points through three quarters before coming to life and winning behind 18 points from Caroline Hartley.
“We’re a team that can really hang in there,” Hartley said. “We’re always there for each other no matter what. Being able to gut this one out was good for us.”
“It was a struggle,” Scarborough coach Mike Giordano said. “This league is so difficult. There are challenges every night. Deering played well early and got confidence, but we kept grinding at it and found a way and obviously, it starts on the defensive end. The dam had to break at some point. We’re too good offensively to not make things happen, then we made some free throws and the game was over.”
The Red Storm earned the No. 2 seed behind Gorham in Class AA South and Wednesday, hosted No. 7 Bonny Eagle (6-12) in the quarterfinals. Scarborough beat the Scots twice early this year, 49-34 Dec. 17 in Standish and 30-25 Dec. 29 at home. The Red Storm are 2-0 all-time versus Bonny Eagle in the playoffs, with a 40-27 quarterfinal round victory two years ago the most recent.
“We were 2-2 coming out of the bye and we finished 12-2 in the last 14, so compliments to the kids and the fun stuff starts now,” Giordano said. “The kids enjoy each other and play for each other. They’re committed to the defensive end and we score enough to be dangerous.
“We have to keep doing what we’ve been doing. Somebody will earn the championship this year. I’m thrilled for the kids to have this great experience. Getting to go downtown would be a fun thing they won’t forget.”
South Portland finished 5-13 and sixth in Class AA South following a 52-49 overtime home loss to Portland in last Thursday’s finale. Ruth Boles scored 18 points and Ava Bryant added 10, but the Red Riots lost on a buzzer-beating 3-pointer which banked in. South Portland was at third-ranked Thornton Academy (13-5) in the preliminary round Wednesday. The Red Riots lost both regular season meetings, 68-61 Dec. 23 at home and 67-54 Jan. 22 in Saco. South Portland is 4-1 all-time versus the Golden Trojans in the tournament, with a 46-18 victory two years ago in the quarterfinals the most recent.
In Class B South, Cape Elizabeth wound up 2-13 and 13th and went to No. 4 Yarmouth (12-4) for the preliminary round Wednesday. The Clippers won the regular season meeting, 40-18, Feb. 1 in Yarmouth. The Clippers won the lone prior playoff encounter as well, 60-42, in the 2002 Western B preliminary round.
Michael Hoffer can be reached at mhoffer@theforecaster.net. Follow him on Twitter: @foresports.
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