STREAKING ARLINGTON OVERWHELMS WAKEFIELD
Arlington, MA. 1/23/18. Tuesday night in Arlington was a night for straights.
After cruising to a 74-52 win over visiting Wakefield, the Spy Ponder boys basketball team qualified for the state tournament for the seventh straight year, stayed comfortably atop the Middlesex Liberty League with their ninth straight win and ran their home winning streak to an astounding 39 straight games.
It was also a big night for junior tri-captain James Gascoigne who dominated the undersized Warriors in the paint with 23 points and 12 rebounds.
Downplaying his performance, Gascoigne joked, “There weren’t too many bigs out there tonight.”
But his coach John Bowler saw things a bit differently. “James is a force underneath,” he said. “He can finish around the rim with either hand, and he can shoot the ball. He’s got a complete offensive game.”
The Spy Ponders owned the glass on both ends of the floor, and it was the key to the game. The Warriors usually got just one shot per trip, while Arlington, particularly senior tri-captains Dom Black and Ben Wasco, joined Gascoigne with multiple second and third chance rebound put-backs.
Black had another successful evening with eight rebounds, 15 points, five assists and three steals. Wasco added eight more rebounds along with seven points while Sophomore Bensley Joseph had what is for him a quiet night with nine points. Overall, nine players scored for Arlington.
At various intervals it looked like the hosts were about to run off with the game. With 3:30 left in the first half Wasco’s put back put the Spy Ponders up 24 – 11, but Wakefield, behind senior co-captain Andrew Miller and sophomore Michael O’Keefe, ended the half with a 10-2 run to close within five, 26-21 at the break.
The Spy Ponders answered, opening the second half with a 12 – 2 run spurred by Joseph and Gascoigne to take a 38-23 lead with 4:40 left in the third quarter.
The pesky Warriors wouldn’t go away, though, and midway through the fourth closed to 56 – 48 after two free throws from junior Patrick Hannigan, but Black and Gascoigne went on a two man 9-0 run, with Black scoring twice in the most unlikely way–alert put-backs on missed Spy Ponder free throws including one of his own, stretching the lead back to 17 and shutting the door.
Senior co-captain Joseph Carmilia-Smith led Wakefield with 12 points. Miller added 11.
Arlington travels to Wilmington Thursday night to meet the Wildcats at 6pm.
