PRESQUE ISLE, Maine — The Presque Isle boys basketball team lost at home Saturday, Dec. 28, against Ellsworth, 74-59, as the Wildcats were unable to keep pace with the Eagles.
Presque Isle’s Caleb Wheaton, right, is defended by Ellsworth player Jackson Curtis during a Saturday, Dec.28 contest. (David Marino Jr. | The Star-Herald)
Four players scored in double digits for the Wildcats (3-5), but it was not enough to pull out the win.
Ellsworth senior Jackson Curtis had a game-high 27 points for the Eagles (4-2). He scored 11 field goals, and was a perfect five-for-five from the free throw line as Presque Isle struggled to defend against him.
Sophomore Xavier McAtee was Presque Isle’s top scorer, with 16 points. Three other players, freshman Malachi Cummings, junior Mason Fletcher and senior Caleb Wheaton each had 10 points.
The game began as a shootout, albeit a competitive one. In the first half, Ellsworth scored 36 points, but Presque Isle was not too far behind with 32.
Ellsworth opened the game up in the third as Curtis scored five times, putting 10 points on the board for his team. With help from sophomore Hunter Curtis’ six points and 3-pointers from senior Darby Barry and sophomore Andrew Rideout, Ellsworth was beating Presque Isle 64-42 going into the fourth.
Presque Isle basketball player Sam Beaulieu, right, looks for an open teammate while at the top of the key during a Dec. 28 game. Defending on the play is Ellsworth’s Jackson Curtis. (David Marino Jr. | The Star-Herald)
Presque Isle played its best offensively and defensively in that quarter. Still, big performances from Fletcher andMcAtee were not nearly enough to bridge the gap.
Curtis said he went into the game knowing that Presque Isle was a formidable opponent, especially because of the skill of its coach, Terry Cummings. He said his final stat line didn’t cross his mind as he faced Presque Isle’s defense.
“I can’t focus on how many points I scored,” Curtis said. “I just do everything I can to help us win.”
Cummings said he was pleased with his team’s performance, but attributed the loss to inexperience and an overeagerness to score, leading to ineffective play.
Despite the loss, Cummings said he was happy with performances many of his players had coming off the bench, especially Fletcher.
“I was proud of the other guys that stepped up because they showed that they could come in,” Cummings said. “And you know, it was a 20-point game, then we cut it back to 12 points.”
