CA stomps DI-S
By Joseph Cyr
Sports Editor
BANGOR — While many might think a back-and-forth first quarter would translate into a thrilling basketball game, the opposite held true Monday night at the Bangor Auditorium.
Staff Photo/Joseph Cyr
UP STRONG — Central Aroostook’s Brendan York, right, takes the ball to the hoop over Deer Isle-Stonigton’s Connor Morey during Monday’s quarterfinal game. The Panthers won 49-29.
Panthers 49
Mariners 29
No. 1 Central Aroostook was matched point-for-point by No. 8 Deer Isle-Stonington in the first quarter, resulting in a 12-11 edge for the Mariners. The Panthers quickly settled into a defensive rhythm the rest of the way and limited Deer Isle-Stonington to just more 17 points in the game en route to a 49-29 quarterfinal victory in the Eastern Class D playoffs.
The Panthers (19-0 overall) face No. 5 Machias 8:35 p.m. Thursday evening at the Bangor Auditorium in the semifinal round. The two teams did not face one another during the regular season.
Mike McClung, a 6-foot, 6-inch senior center, led the Panthers in scoring with 16 points. McClung was also a game-changer on the defensive end, blocking or altering numerous Mariner shots in the first quarter. In fact, McClung was so dominant inside defensively, that Deer Isle-Stonington all but abandoned the inside game from the second quarter on.
Other Panther scorers were Dan Brewer and Logan McLaughlin, each with eight; Caleb Kelly and Steven Decker, each with six; and Brendan York, five.
For the Mariners, Sam Grindle had 16 points; Kevin Melanio and Dylan Brown, each had four; Connor Morey, three; and Mario Bartlett, two.
“They [Deer Isle-Stonington] tried to slow things down and the actually got a lot of good shots off,” CAHS coach Tim Brewer said. “They were patient and did a good job breaking our pressure.”
Brewer said he hoped his team would work the ball inside more in Monday night’s game.
“We had some opportunities, but just didn’t make a good pass,” he said. “But I was happy with our defensive effort, especially in the second half.”
The two teams continued to trade buckets early in the second quarter, but the Panthers went on an 11-0 run to end the first half on top 26-16. The Mariners never led again.
The Panthers sank nine of 14 foul shots, while the Mariners converted eight of 13 free throws. Interestingly, Central Aroostook did not make a 3-point shot on the night.
MARINERS 12 4 5 8—29
PANTHERS 11 15 12 1—49
