Monday night, an all-out battle took place for second place in the NHIAA Division III boys’ basketball standings. Kearsarge hosted Hopkinton in what felt like a playoff game from start to finish.
A frantic first half that featured a deluge of three-pointers from the Cougars gave way to a more defensive and cagey second, with the Hawks’ size and physicality in the paint ultimately netting the win, 59-55.
“That’s a Kearsarge-Hopkinton battle,” said Hopkinton head coach Steve Signor. “Every time we come out, no matter what our quality of teams is, we battle to the end. We got the best of them tonight, but I hope — and I told (Kearsarge coach Nate Camp) — I said, ‘I’m not done. I want to see you again in the semis, because it looks like we could potentially be the (Nos.) 2 and 3 (seeds) if we win out.’ ”
While a playoff matchup between these two teams would be appointment viewing, don’t take for granted the classic that those in attendance witnessed Monday night.
The first half got off to a dream start for the Hawks. The visitors silenced the packed Kearsarge student section with an 8-0 run to start the game. But a quick turnaround from the Cougars — including the first of seven first-half threes — brought Kearsarge and the crowd back into it.
For the rest of the half, both teams tried to wrestle momentum from the other. Senior Bobby Needham drained three from beyond the arc for the Cougars while his teammates chipped in for another 15 points in the second. But a 24-point quarter was only good enough to give Kearsarge a 36-35 lead at the half.
The rhythm of the game changed dramatically in the second half. Kearsarge’s shooting from deep fell off. And when the shots missed, Hopkinton took dominant control of the paint, helping themselves to rebounds on both ends of the floor. The Hawks swooped in over the heads of the shorter Cougars and won ball after ball off the glass.
“We prevented them from getting that second opportunity,” said Signor. “You know, first half, they hit a bunch of key threes, but in the second half, they were missing but they also weren’t getting rebounds off of it, and that was the key. Some of our guys were really stepping up.”
“We had a couple, you know, costly turnovers and empty possessions that were kind of the difference in the fourth quarter,” said Camp. “I think they got a couple of second-chance points that really made the difference. Their size made a difference for them.”
Kearsarge was up two going into the fourth period. But from the start of the quarter, it was clear momentum had nested with the Hawks. Kearsarge committed numerous offensive turnovers down the stretch, many of which were the result of tenacious Hopkinton defense.
The key play of the night came from Hopkinton senior Quinn Whitehead. With his team up 56-53 and just under a minute to play, Whitehead threw himself airborne and grabbed the ball out of a Cougar’s hands after a rebound. Whitehead fell to the ground with the ball and called a timeout.
From there, stellar ball movement helped drain the clock, and clutch free throws from Whitehead sealed the 59-55 victory for the Hawks.
“I mean, this was a playoff atmosphere for sure. And just being able to handle the pressure in that in that way,” said Signor. “Proud of these guys.”