Prep-Malden Catholic feature game among area hoop first-rounders

The St. John’s Prep basketball team has already scored a minor victory – a coin flip that earned the Eagles (13-7) the 14th seed in Division 1 North boys basketball tournament and a preliminary round home game against a familiar foe, 19th-seeded Malden Catholic (10-10), on Tuesday (7 p.m.).”It’s the first time in about six years we’ve won one of those things,” St. John’s coach Dan Letarte said. “We would have had either Central Catholic on the road or Malden Catholic at home.”The Lancers aren’t going to be fodder, though. The two teams split their regular season meetings, with each winning on the other’s home court.Malden Catholic is led by center Clifton Bonner-Desravines and guard Corey Ryser, the latter a 1,000-point scorer. The win over the Prep at Danvers was the first for the Lancers in the Catholic Conference in three years.”They’re a senior-laden team and those kids have helped build up the program,” Letarte said. “It’s going to be an even battle.”The Eagles are, of course, led by Ryan O’Connell, who paced the conference with 26 ppg. Should St. John’s get past Malden Catholic, it will face Greater Boston League champion Everett (3rd seed; 17-1) on Thursday.”Division 1 is so tough this year; there are so many good teams,” Letarte said. “You’ve got five, maybe six teams who could be the favorite.”One of the teams that probably falls into the underdog role but is playing as well as anyone right now is Salem (10th seed; 15-5), which has won 13 of its last 15 games.The Witches start the tournament on Monday in Lexington (7th seed; 16-4), the runnerup in the Middlesex League.Salem is led by Northeastern Conference North division MVP Junior Lugo, who averages 18 ppg. The Witches have only one starter taller than 6-feet in Chris Maxson, but make up for lack of height with quickness. They’ll need it against a Lexington team that usually likes to play full-court pressure defense.Unbeaten Charlestown (21-0) and Lowell (19-1), which beat Lynn English twice this season, are the top two seeds in Division 1. Central Catholic (19-2), which handed Lowell its only loss so far, is a dangerous 4th seed.In Division 2, the resurgence of Marblehead’s boys basketball program continues. The Magicians (16-4), who won the NEC’s South division for the second straight year, earned the top seed and will play a quarterfinal round game at home (date TBA) against either eighth-seeded Wakefield or ninth-seeded Concord-Carlisle, both of which are 11-9.Marblehead is led by center Damola Abu, NEC All-Star Taariq Allen and point guard Pat Song.The other NEC team in the Division 2 tournament is 6th-seeded Beverly (12-8), which will play a first round game on Tuesday at home against Winchester, one of four Middlesex League teams in the bracket.The winner will play at 3rd-seeded North Andover (15-5) in the quarterfinals at a date to be determined.With 10 seniors on the roster, the Panthers could be a dangerous team in the tourney, and they got some good news this week when Nate Knudson returned to full health after battling flu-like symptoms.Dark horses in the Division 2 bracket could be Boston City League member Latin Academy (12th; 10-10) and Arlington (9-11), which is seeded 13th and last but plays in the rugged Greater Boston League.The Division 3 tournament field is as tough as ever, with five teams posting winning percentages of .750 or better. Swampscott (13-7) is the seventh seed will play against Arlington Catholic (10th seed; 13-9) on Monday, in the first post-season game at the new Swampscott High.A tournament-tested Big Blue team is led by NEC South MVP John Beaulieu.Bishop Fenwick (11-9) drew the 13th seed and will travel to meet 4th-seeded Hamilton-Wenham in a first round game on Monday. The Crusaders will rely on Catholic Conference scoring champ Mike Clifford (24 ppg) with the Generals (14-4) are led by Mike Carter-Williams (20 ppg).Teams to watch are Middlesex League champ Watertown (2nd seed; 18-2) and Bedford (3rd seed; 17-3) which won the