Tech comeback attempt foiled

LYNN – By the time the Lynn Tech boys basketball team got into an offensive rhythm against Chelsea on Monday evening, it was already a tad too late. The Tigers spotted the Red Devils a 35-17 halftime lead before a second-half surge still left the hosts on the short end of a 59-51 final.?It?s always a battle when we play Chelsea and tonight was no different,” said Tech coach Marvin Avery. “We had a slow start and they took advantage of it, but our guys never quit and I?m proud of our effort, not just tonight but throughout the season.”In a fast-paced first quarter with virtually no stoppages, the teams traded buckets until the score was 8-8 with 2:35 to play. Chelsea, however, used its speed to finish the period on an 8-0 run, getting two buckets from Erik Flores, who finished with a game-high 20 points.Tech?s Odell Tiggs (19 points) would match Flores? output in the opening 8:00 to keep things close.After closing out the first quarter with a great move to earn a lay-in, Oscar Sabillion (18 points) came out firing to start the second period, scoring on a layup before nailing a three-ball from the top of the arc. Both baskets came after Tech turnovers followed inbounds passes.The Devils stretched the lead to 16 at the 2:45 mark following back-to-back wide-open jumpers from Fasil Nasimi, the former from downtown. Nasimi (10 points) put a punctuation mark on the half, sinking a deep two with just four seconds to play.Chelsea finished the opening 16 minutes of play with six three-pointers, and finished the game with 10, good for over half of its total scoring.?We aren?t the biggest of teams, so we tend to use our speed as an advantage as much as possible,” explained Chelsea coach Jay Seagel. “When we are moving our feet, we are able to open up our outside shooting, which was the difference today. It?s tough to be a consistent three-point shooting team at the high school level but we did a great job with it tonight.”The Tigers came out much stronger for the second half, outscoring the visitors in both periods, but were unable to get closer than eight. This was in large part thanks to the shooting prowess of Flores, who hit three deep balls in the final two minutes of the third quarter.Behind the efforts of Tiggs (9 points) and Michael Anaya, who scored eight of his 19 points in the final period, Tech managed to stick around. The former would cut the deficit to eight with 3:35 remaining on a highlight-reel play that saw him jump to corral a fast-break feed, before a behind-the-legs dribble shook the lone defender, allowing him the bucket.?Both Odell and Michael really picked up on our game plan late in the game and managed to keep us alive,” said Avery.The hosts also got solid contributions from Shaiheem Mazil, who finished with eight points.The dagger in the Tigers? heart came with 1:48 to play when Sabillion made an athletic move driving down the lane to score while drawing a free throw, which he hit to boost the lead to 11. Jorge Ramos scored eight points on the night for the Devils.?We lost to a team we have the utmost respect for tonight and who is built like us in a lot of ways,” explained Avery, whose squad plays North Shore Tech today. “Their team, like ours, is comprised of a group of tough kids from the inner city who love to compete.”