LOWELL — It’s not typically a staff will be known as the ‘Biggest Workforce in College Historical past’ however Pioneer Valley could have simply laid declare to that title.
The highest-seeded Panthers (26-0) completed off an unprecedented undefeated season with a powerful 49-28 victory over No. 2 Hopedale (22-3) to seize the Division 5 boys basketball state championship at Tsongas Heart.
Brayden Thayer was excellent with a game-high 26 factors – all coming within the first three quarters – and fellow senior Alex McClelland did the remaining with 13 factors, 10 rebounds and 5 assists for the Panthers.
This was Pioneer Valley’s fourth journey to the state finals and it now owns three state championships, including to the 1996 and 1997 titles.
“That is wonderful particularly to go undefeated at 26-0. Statistically talking we’re the best staff ever on the college, however none of us anticipated this and we simply took it sooner or later and one recreation at a time,” mentioned Thayer. “Particularly for us seniors, this being our final recreation ever collectively it’s simply so memorable. We’re simply so unselfish, discovering the open man and we belief each man on the ground to make a play.”
Hopedale was proper in the midst of issues simply as Thayer was heating up within the first quarter. Thayer drained considered one of his six three-pointers to place the Panthers up late within the quarter, however Patrick Madden was up for the problem and matched Thayer with a three-pointer on the buzzer to present Hopedale the 11-10 lead.
With momentum clearly with the Blue Raiders out of the break, the stifling Panthers protection returned as the primary quarter jitters ended. Hopedale got here into the finals averaging simply over 63 factors per recreation within the state playoffs however couldn’t determine the stacked protection of the Panthers.
Pioneer Valley went on a 15-2 run within the second quarter to finish any concepts of the upset and led 25-13 heading into halftime.
“I assumed we have been in nice form and clearly it was a detailed recreation at that time. We have been taking part in fairly good protection and getting again so that they weren’t getting any transition baskets,” mentioned Hopedale head coach Tony Cordani. “I knew the way in which (Pioneer Valley) performed protection we have been going to have plenty of perimeter photographs from the skin and we simply wanted to knock down just a few of them.”
After the 15-2 rout within the second, the chilly taking pictures for the Blue Raiders continued as they completed 5-of-20 from past the arc, which doomed the hopes of Hopedale. Madden did all he may with a team-high 13 factors whereas senior counterpart Brayden Lewis was the hustle and muscle with eight rebounds on the glass for the Blue Raiders.
Pioneer Valley head coach Scott Thayer couldn’t have written a greater script and marked the historic win as bittersweet in his closing recreation teaching his son.
However Thayer additionally pointed to being with every senior, together with his son Brayden, as a coach since their seventh-grade season.
“Our protection and rebounding have been the important thing to our success all yr lengthy. We simply consider in what we do and make it exhausting for different groups to attain the ball. We have now these spurts and as soon as we get out forward – we simply suffocate it,” mentioned coach Thayer. “Final night time we had a staff dinner, and all people left, and I used to be simply sitting on my own, and the feelings have been excessive. It’s a difficult dynamic nevertheless it’s one we’ve actually labored out. To know that is the final recreation that I’ll ever coach him, it couldn’t be any higher.”
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