Fenwick boys get revenge on Wilmington in OT, reach D3 North final

CHELSEA ? Fenwick’s boys basketball team earned a bit of revenge from last year’s tournament by defeating Wilmington 71-60 in overtime in the Division 3 North semifinals.”Ever since last year we were looking for some revenge,” Crusaders center Mike Clifford said. “We knew that they were not going to give up. But I really didn’t want to end my high school career just yet.”Fenwick earns the right to play Watertown in the Division 3 North final (Sunday at 3 at the Tsongas Arena). The Crusaders will again have revenge on their minds, as the two-time defending champions dismissed them from the tournament in the semifinals two years ago.On Thursday, Fenwick survived a last-minute run by the Wildcats after holding a comfortable lead for the entire game.”We never have a dull one,” Crusaders coach Mike Kane said. “This is our second straight game that we let a team back into the game.”It even appeared momentarily that Wilmington earned the win when Craig Melillo hit a shot with four seconds remaining in the game. His toes grazed the three-point line; otherwise, Wilmington would have pulled off the stunning comeback and upset.Fenwick dominated the overtime. In fact, the Crusaders held the Cats without a point, while scoring 11 of their own.The Crusaders also dominated the first half. Nolan DiPanfilo led the way outside with 21 first-half points, while Clifford cleaned up the inside scoring with 13 first-half points. Both finished the game with 24 points. Clifford flirted with a triple-double, as he pulled down 26 rebounds and came up with seven blocks.”It was great to watch Nolan and Mike out there,” said Kane. “But you want the other guys to contribute a bit, too.”The Wildcats slowly started to chip away at Fenwick’s 10-point halftime lead early in the second half. At one point in the third quarter, Mike Murphy ripped off eight consecutive points for the Wildcats en route to his 16-point performance.”You really have to give him (Murphy) credit,” said Kane. “He was unbelievable in the second half, making shots and driving the lane.”Mike Manganelli also had a strong night for Wilmington. He finished with a team-high 19 points. He single-handedly kept the Wildcats in the game in the first half, scoring 12 of their 21 points.”We knew that we were going to have to win this game on the defensive end of the court,” DiPanfilo said.Phil Eagan hit some key shots down the stretch for Fenwick.”Whenever we need to hit a shot,” said Kane, “Phil makes a big play.”Nick Cotoia had a strong game dispersing the ball. He made 11 assists to go with his six points and rebounds.