The Hopkinton boys’ basketball team saved its best for last on Thursday night. Unfortunately for the Hawks, by then it was too late.
On the road against Conant – one of the top teams in Division III – Hopkinton trailed 12-0 right out of the gate and fell behind by as many as 22 in the contest. The Hawks snapped out of it in the second half, catching fire from behind the arc with five 3-pointers in the fourth quarter alone to pull within five, but it wasn’t enough to overtake the Orioles in a 61-53 loss.
“If you can’t stop somebody, especially in their home gym and a gym like that, you can’t then expect a good outcome,” Hopkinton coach Steve Signor said. “We got down deep in the third and then we just showed something where we were able to battle back and get it close. We saw a lot of good things, just couldn’t put a complete game together.”
The Hawks (8-6) had little trouble putting together a full 32 minutes when the season started, rattling off seven straight wins to open the year. But since a 43-40 win over these same Orioles (11-3) on Jan. 10, the Hawks have lost six of their last seven games heading down the stretch.
“Just staying positive,” Signor said of the approach. “We hit rock bottom for a couple of games there, but I started to see some energy in the last game against Mascenic, and I’m seeing it again in this one, so we’re headed in the right direction.
“We just have to put all those little pieces together so that when we play teams like a Conant, Campbell or Somersworth, we have a complete game because you can’t get down against teams like that and expect to come back every time,” Signor said.
Hopkinton had all sorts of trouble slowing down Conant’s balanced offensive attack, especially in the first half where the Orioles opened with a 20-8 advantage after the first quarter.
The Orioles finished with four players in double figures, including 14 points apiece for the trio of Peyton Springfield, Anthony Gauthier and Gavin Motuzas and 11 points for Jake Drew.
Conant’s lead grew to 16 by halftime (36-20) before the Hawks dug deep, slowly cutting into the deficit to put the pressure back on the Orioles.
But not even their red-hot stroke from distance could bring the Hawks all the way back.
Michael Baer (two), Tyler Allen (two) and Derek West all connected from 3-point land in a final frame when Hopkinton outscored Conant, 19-12. But by then, the Hawks’ best wasn’t good enough.
Baer (15 points) and junior big man Kevin Newton-Delgado (16 points) led the way in scoring, while Allen added six points for the Hawks, who are set to host Prospect Mountain on Tuesday night.
“Hopefully we can pull out a win in the next game, which will certainly put a charge through the guys down the stretch,” Signor said. “But I’m starting to see them put the pieces together that they weren’t in the middle (of the season), so hopefully by playoffs we’ll be ready.”
Oyster River 69, Kearsarge 53
Key players: Kearsarge – Noah Tremblay (23 points), Kyle Hernon (13 points, 6 blocks, 6 assists), Ben Carl (7 points, 6 assists), Adrian McCarthy (6 points, 6 rebounds), Jak Jallah (4 points, 4 rebounds)
Highlights: Kearsarge hung with one of the top teams in D-II, taking an 18-15 lead after one quarter and trailing 52-44 after three. At the five-minute mark of the final frame, Kearsarge trailed by nine with the ball and Tremblay launched a 3-pointer that rimmed out. That was the closest the Cougars got as the Bobcats went 22 of 23 from the free-throw line.
Coach’s Quote: “We battled with one of the top teams in Division II and our boys showed what they were made of. I don’t think we played our best game, however there were moments when we looked really good against a very athletic and talented team. This game will help us prepare and make adjustments for the final few weeks of our season.” – Kearsarge’s Nate Camp
Records: Kearsarge 6-6; Oyster River 11-1
Timberlane 56, Concord 16
Key players: Concord – Tyler Simpson (6-3 win at 160), Isaac Gladey (16-4 win at 170), Abbas Abdulrahman (pin at 182), Joseph Gimaranzi (6-2 win at 195)
Highlights: The evening started in Concord’s favor at 160 where Simpson put the Tide ahead with a victory. Concord won the next three matches with strong showings from Gladey, Abdulrahman and Gimaranzi for a 16-6 lead before Timberlane, the defending Division I champs, took total control, sweeping the remaining matches. The Tide finished the regular season 19-1.
Concord 2nd
Key players: Concord – Kevin McDonough (1st overall, 1:02.22), Sean McDonough (5th, 1:04.19), Simon Foisey (16th, 1:18.64)
Highlights: Kevin McDonough posted the fastest first run at 30.33 seconds in the slalom course at Pat’s Peak, helping the Tide secure second place with 362 points. Bedford grabbed the top spot with 386 points.
Concord 3rd
Key players: Concord – Grace Devanny (10th, 1:14.72), Sophia Shea (17th, 1:25.45), Lily Bairstow (22nd, 1:34.16)
Highlights: Devanny was the lone Concord skier to finish inside the top 10, but the Tide did enough in the slalom course to finish third as a team with 349 points. Bedford won the race with 388 points.