St. John’s boys hoop tops East Boston, reaches D1 North semis

DANVERS ? The third seeded St. John’s Prep boys basketball team earned a spot in the Division 1 North semifinals after inching out a win against East Boston in a hard-fought contest, 60-56, on Saturday night.”It was a great team effort,” Eagles coach Sean Connolly said. “We played a very effective half-court man-to-man defense. We also did a nice job on the boards.”The Eagles (19-2) clinched the game at the free throw line in the closing minutes of the game. Pat Connaughton sealed the win by hitting a free throw with less than five seconds left to put the Prep up by five points.”We want the ball in Pat’s hands in the closing minutes of any game,” said Connolly. “He is an extremely talented kid.”Connaughton had a monster game, scoring a game-high 23 points, while pulling down 22 rebounds and making seven steals. He did an extraordinary job on the defensive side of the court challenging the Jets (16-5) and forcing ill-conceived passes and shots.St. John’s flirted with pulling away for virtually the entire fourth quarter. On three separate occasions the Eagles enjoyed an eight point lead only to have East Boston storm back and get it within two points.Steve Haladyna was a force the entire game, using all of his 6-foot-4 frame to slash to the rim and score 11 points, while tearing down 11 rebounds.”He is what you call a slasher,” said Connolly. “He is very good at getting to the rim. He has played like this all season.”Sophomore Mackenzie Burt had a great start to the game, carrying the Eagles offense by scoring nine of the team’s 15 first-quarter points.The sixth seeded Jets countered St. John’s fundamentals and control of the paint with athleticism and aggressive defense.”(East Boston) was one of the two best teams we’ve played all year,” said Connolly. “They were by far the most athletic team.”The Jets had two players finish in double figures: Jeff Amazan (10) and Elijah Chisholm (13). Stanley Greene also had a strong performance finishing with eight points.The win sets up a battle of local titans in the semifinals, as the Eagles will now face Lynn English, who defeated Lexington on Friday night.”They (English) are the best team that I’ve seen in the last 10 years,” said Connolly. “We’re excited for the chance to play them.”