Boys Hoop: Big Blue get first win of season

Senior captain Lonnie Smith-Matthews deflected a three-point attempt at the end of regulation to give Swampscott’s boys basketball team its first win of the season in the Winthrop Holiday Tournament consolation: 63-61 over North Cambridge Catholic.”I think (getting the first win of the season) really took some of the pressure off the kids,” Big Blue coach Justin Fucile said. “They have been working hard and I think the progress has really started to show. The younger players are really starting to play well and I think we’ll be getting better as the season goes on.”A.J. Baker led the team with 14 points. He nailed a free throw with 15 seconds left to tie the game. He then stole the ball and hit a pair of clutch free throws to set up Smith-Matthews’ heroics.Nick Moll also finished in double digits with 13.Revere 49, Chelsea 48At Chelsea, Patriot Will Weathers delivered the game-winning layup with 3.5 seconds remaining, and his brother, Trae, deflected a potential game-winning three-pointer as Revere picked up its first win of the season over a previously undefeated Chelsea (5-1) squad.”I think we caught them a little tired, but I’ll take it,” said Patriot (1-4) coach Rick Hayes in reference to Chelsea’s wins over Wakefield and Salem over the last two nights. “We opened the season with losses to Salem, English, Beverly – in three overtimes – and Classical, and then had to play an unbeaten Chelsea team. We were certainly thrown into the fire. Hopefully, we can build on this.”Greg Cabral was Revere’s high scorer with 18 points. The Weathers brothers had eight apiece.Winthrop 61, Troup (RI) 49At Winthrop, Jake Connors earned Winthrop Holiday Tournament MVP honors, as he again led the team with 15 points. Dino Mallios was named a tournament all-star as he finished with 13 points.Saugus 80, St. Clement 56At North Reading, Brian Boyajian put together an absolutely monster game in the Cougar Holiday Classic Consolation Game, scoring 22 points, ripping down eight rebounds and making six steals. Omar Benabicha led the team in scoring with 23 points. He also pulled down six boards. Curtis Casella also finished in double figures with 16 points.Salem 71, Monument 61At South Boston, Antonio Reyes scored a game-high 20 points and added seven assists for the Witches (4-3). Derek McIntyre had a strong game inside the paint, scoring 18 points while tearing down 11 boards.North Reading 66, Fenwick 63At Peabody, the Crusaders (1-3) went on an impressive third-quarter run to erase a six-point deficit. Unfortunately, the Hornets began to pull away at the end of the third quarter. Trevor Grace had a monster game, hitting five three-pointers (four coming in the second half) and scoring 23 points. Brett DiPanfilo scored 10 second-half points and 14 overall. Mike Lachance pulled down 10 boards to go along with his eight points.