The regular season is rapidly winding to a close as boys’ squads are busy battling for playoff positions. The postseason begins Feb. 9, 2016 with preliminary round games.
In Class B North, Houlton (1-12, 6.9743 Points) has five games remaining on the schedule and will need to notch several victories if it the team hopes to qualify for the playoffs. The Shires are presently 14th in the region, with the top 12 squads making the postseason.
In Class C North, Hodgdon (8-5, 33.1481) is seventh. The top 12 squads make the postseason, with the top four earning a bye. Hodgdon appears poised to host a preliminary playoff.
In Class D North, Southern Aroostook (8-3, 44.5062) is second, while East Grand/GHCA (3-8, 10.2469) is eighth and Katahdin (2-9, 3.7654) is 12th. The top 10 seeds make the postseason. Easton (9-2, 51.9753) is the top-ranked team in the region.
The following is a recap of games played through Monday.
Wisdom 61, East Grand/GHCA 34 — At Danforth Monday, Jack Guerrette led a balanced scoring attack with 19 points to propel Wisdom past East Grand/Houlton Christian Academy. Chase Gervais added 15 points and Kody Cyr chipped in 13.
Thomas Gilman paced the Vikings with 12 points, while Jed Grant and Wyatt Oliver had 10 rebounds each.
Hodgdon 38, Easton 71 — At Easton Monday, Logan Halvorson led all scorers with 20 points to help the Bears roll past Hodgdon. Drew Sotomayor tallied 11 points, while Hunter Brown and Jake Flewelling had 10 each.
For the Hawks, Daden Palmer and Jimmy Buzzell scored 10 and nine points, respectively.
Washburn 65, So. Aroostook 68 — At Dyer Brook Friday, the Warriors held on for a narrow three-point win over visiting Washburn. Individual results were not reported.
Houlton 33, John Bapst 38 — At Bangor Friday, Noah Tomah and Alex Mooney combined to score all 14 fourth-quarter points for John Bapst as the Crusaders held off a comeback attempt by Houlton for the win. Nate Smith finished with 15 points and Mooney had 11.
Nick Perfitt and Jacob Brown both scored nine points to pace the Shiretowners.
John Bapst led 14-4, 17-8 and 24-20 at the quarter breaks.
Wisdom 17, Hodgdon 60 — At Hodgdon Friday, Buzzell led the Hawks with 13 points en route to the win over Wisdom. Palmer and Jordyn Merritt each added nine points while Devin Ramsey chipped eight for 8-4 Hodgdon.
Chance Gervais led the 3-6 Pioneers with seven points.
Hodgdon led 16-7, 37-11 and 55-12 at the quarter breaks.
Shead 62, East Grand/GHCA 36 — At Danforth Thursday, Ryan Eyler and Ryan Demolet scored 16 and 15 points, respectively, to propel Shead of Eastport to victory over East Grand/Greater Houlton Christian Academy.
The Vikings were led by Issac Potter and Gilman, who both scored 10 points.
Katahdin 40, Penquis 52 — At Milo Thursday, Penquis outscored Katahdin 29-14 in the second half to pull away for the win. Devon Cuthbertson led the Patriots with 14 points and nine rebounds. Claytie Preble chipped in 10 points and had eight assists.
For Katahdin, Brody Guiggey tossed in a game-high 20 points, while Dakota Reinhardt added 10.
Katahdin led 16-11 in the first quarter, 26-23 at halftime before Penquis went on top 38-33 after three periods.
Hodgdon 41, Central Aroostook 60 — At Mars Hill Jan. 12, Dustin Pryor led a balanced scoring attack with 15 points while Ben Thomas and Zach Crouch contributed 14 and 13 points, respectively.
For the Hawks, Daden Palmer recorded a game-high 17 points and Jimmy Buzzell chipped in 11.
The Panthers led 9-8, 28-25 and 43-37 at the quarter breaks.
Houlton 34, Calais 39 — At Calais Jan. 12, fans who made their way out on a snowy Tuesday night were treated to an exciting defensive battle between two teams fighting for wins to move up in the standings, with Calais prevailing in overtime.
Branden Gillespie secured the win for Calais in overtime with four straight free throws down the stretch. Jacob Worthley hit the first basket for Houlton, but Blake Collins answered with a 3-pointer as Calais took a lead it wouldn’t relinquish.
Calais freshman point Blake Collins sent the game into overtime when he hit two free throws to tie it. Calais’ Matt Perkins and Houlton’s Jacob Brown each came up with defensive stops to send the game into overtime.
Gillespie scored 14 points to lead Calais and Graham paced Houlton with 11.
Calais led 10-5 in the first quarter and 16-14 at the half before Houlton took a 26-21 lead after three periods. The two teams were knotted at 30-30 at the end of regulation.
