The Houlton Shiretowners had a physical game that left many feeling it went beyond what is acceptable in high school basketball last Friday night in Lincoln.
Though other Shiretowners were manhandled, the brunt of Mattanawcook’s aggression was directed at senior Kyle Bouchard.
Despite the actions, the Shiretowners kept their cool to prevail, 85-41.
Bouchard finished with a game-high 28 points, even though he was the target of cheap shots. Christian Crane posted 17 more.
The Lynx were led by Carter Ward’s 12 and Gunner Maxwell’s 10.
On Monday, Lincoln’s coach, Ryan Libby, who has been at the school for six years, resigned and two players are being disciplined for their actions.
The Shires forged a 33-1 first-quarter lead and led 33-17 at halftime. After the third, Houlton led, 62-29.
Last Wednesday at home, the Shires overtook Schenck, 68-53, avenging an earlier one-point loss in East Millinocket.
Bouchard again led the Shiretowners with 27 points and 12 rebounds, while handing out eight assists. Jake Drew tossed in 13 points and had seven steals, while Crane chipped in with 11 points and grabbed nine rebounds.
Schenck was led by Justin Thompson’s 21.
Houlton led throughout the game: 26-18; 32-25; and 48-35.
The Southern Aroostook Warriors overpowered host Katahdin, 86-51. There were no highlights available for this game, but the Warriors also defeated Ashland last Tuesday, 67-52, in Dyer Brook.
The Hornets actually led after the first quarter, 16-11, but Southern Aroostook settled down and took a 32-28 halftime advantage. In the third, the Warriors held a 44-38 lead and held off a hustling Hornet squad.
Nolan Altvater keyed Southern Aroostook’s offense with 27 points and Jackson Mathers dropped in 19 more.
For Ashland, Cody Blair netted 14 and Mark Chasse added 13.
The Hodgdon Hawks picked up two wins last week over Madawaska and Central Aroostook.
In last Saturday’s game against visiting Madawaska, the Hawks outscored the Owls, 27-10, to put the game out of reach with a 75-54 win.
The Hawks led 17-11 to open the game and 33-25 at intermission.
Jimmy Buzzell led the Hawks with 21 points and Daden Palmer netted 15 more.
For the Owls, Cedric Gendreau scored a game-high 24 points.
Last Thursday in Hodgdon, the Hawks pulled away from Central Aroostook in the second half for a 56-47 victory. The Panthers raced to an 11-point first-quarter lead, but the Hawks had a strong second quarter to pull to within one at halftime.
Palmer keyed Hodgdon’s offense with 14 points, while Kevin McAfee tossed in 12.
The Panthers were led by Dustin Pryor, Zachary Crouch and Caleb Harris, each with a dozen points, while Riley McGrath added 11 more.
The Katahdin Cougars edged Ashland, 70-67, last Thursday night in Stacyville.
The game started with a 14-all tie, with Ashland holding a 27-23 halftime advantage. After three, the Cougars had taken a 46-44 lead en route to victory. No team saw a lead of more than eight points in the game.
T.J. Young scored 21 points, including six 3-pointers to lead Katahdin, while Gavin Russell tossed in 18 points and Nick Lane netted 11 more.
Ashland’s Blair poured in 37 points, while Michael Cook posted 15.
The East Grand Vikings battled back from a 17-7 first-quarter deficit to tie the game at halftime, 24-all. The game was still in reach for East Grand, as they trailed 39-31 after three. But, they were outscored 20-12 in the final period, as Woodland took a 59-43 win.
Alex Stoddard was high man for the Vikings with 14 points, while Jimmy Brittain added 12.
