Mascenic and Hopkinton are set for a Saturday NHIAA Division III quarterfinal matchup after the Vikings demolished Hillsboro-Deering and the Hawks defeated Conant on Wednesday evening.
Defending co-champions Mascenic took care of business right way in Hillsboro, holding the Hillcats to just one hoop in both the first and second quarter on their way to a 27-4 halftime lead.
When these two teams met last year, the Vikings pulled out to a similar commanding lead; head coach Brandon Kear played his bench for the entire fourth quarter, and the Hillcats nearly pulled an epic comeback, outscoring the Vikings 37-16 in the fourth.
Kear said he showed his boys that game film this week in practice and told them to approach the playoff matchup as if they were down by 21, and it seemed to work, as the Vikings beat the Hillcats by exactly 21, 56-27.
“It motivated me, at least,” Kear said. “I think it was also a good way to show them how far they’ve come.”
Joe Cocozella had a game-high 15 for the Vikings; Zack Coombs had 10 to lead Hillsboro-Deering.
Mascenic advances to play Hopkinton on the road in the quarterfinals Saturday; the Hawks pulled away and beat a valiant Conant team on Wednesday night.
Hopkinton has size in 6’8” Brendan Elrick; they have excellent guardplay in Quinn Whitehead and Michael Oberheim, and they have a lethal outside shooter in Owen Milchick. Despite all that, Conant’s gritty effort kept them in the game until the final minutes.
“I couldn’t be more proud of those kids,” said Conant head coach Eric Saucier after the game. “I mean, it’s David and Goliath out there, and we never gave up.”
Senior Hayden Ketola came out hot against the Hawk man-to-man defense in the first half, scoring all seven of his points early on. Senior Colson Seppala had success early as well, with eight of his team-high 13.
Whitehead carried the first-half scoring load for the Hawks, with 10 of his game-high 14.
Garrett Somero did a tremendous job on Elrick defensively, holding him to 12 points on a bevy of offensive rebound putbacks. What Conant may have lacked in size and skill, they made up for with grit and hustle.
“It’s all heart,” Saucier said. “That’s what kept us in the game. I’ll coach kids with heart over kids with talent any day.”
Whatever success Conant found in the first half withered away in the second, as the Hawks switched to zone and planted Elrick in the middle. The Orioles, faced with a major shotblocking presence, became tentative, throwing up floaters to avoid the swat. Meanwhile, Owen Milchick came alive for Hopkinton, hitting a three-point dagger to extend the Hawks’ 23-18 halftime lead to nine at the end of the third and then another in the fourth that buried the Orioles, and Hopkinton won it 46-31.
“I’m glad that these seniors and these kids got to play,” Saucier said. “COVID has been tough on everybody. I don’t even know what I would have done without the season. So to have a season and be able to give these kids a chance to compete and to give me some sanity – and get me away from my girlfriend, because I would drive her crazy – it’s a blessing and I’m glad we were able to do it.”
Mascenic and Hopkinton square off in the quarterfinals Saturday evening.