Greater Lawrence boys basketball team wins a wild one at Tech

LYNN – Lynn Tech lost a tense basketball game Tuesday at its own gym, 59-57, to Greater Lawrence. But in the loss might come a bit of redemption, as the young Tigers may have learned a thing or two about cliffhangers.This one was certainly all of that. Each team had double-digit leads, only to lose them. The Reggies’ happened early in the first quarter, when they sprung out to a 12-2 lead – a margin Tech had reached and surpassed by halftime.Tech’s 10-point surge came midway through the third quarter. But after that, it was all Greater Lawrence, as the Reggies let loose with a barrage of three-pointers, including four in a row – and two by freshman Donald Celestina, whose unorthodox looking shot found the net twice in a row. The second one pulled Greater Lawrence, which had trailed 41-31, to within two, 45-43, at the end of the third quarter.”That kid just got hot at the right time,” said Tech coach Marvin Avery.The Reggies rode their momentum into, and throughout, the fourth quarter. Two quick hoops by Kelvin Correa, who had the other two 3-pointers to close out the third quarter, propelled them to a 47-45 lead, and while the Reggies were heating up, Tech was definitely cooling off.”Basketball’s four quarters,” said Avery. “Every possession counts.”Both those kids got into a comfort zone,” Avery said. “We couldn’t contain them.”The Tigers tried, though. The lead seesawed back and forth as players on both ends generated some pretty good offense. Lorenzo Rivera tied it back up at 47, and from there, the teams kept trading baskets.At 55-53, Reggies, the fun started. Victor Smith (15 points) tied it back up with 1:55 to go, and when Tech stole the ball on the other end, it looked as if the Tigers might be able to finally put the Reggies away.Nothing doing. Greater Lawrence got the ball back, and Hector Heredia scored the go-ahead bucket with 42 seconds left.Rivera went up strong to the hoop to knot it back up again at 57, and a technical against Tech could have been deadly, except that Greater Lawrence missed both shots.Tech got the ball back on an offensive foul, but could not convert. And when the Reggies got it back, after a time out, Correa – who led all scorers with 16 points – banked one in at the buzzer to win the game for the Reggies.”We’re young,” said Avery. “It was a tough battle against a good team.”We can’t afford to play catchup,” he said. “Our inexperience means we have to get off to a good start. No excuses, though. This was a learning experience for us.”