ITEM PHOTO BY KATIE MORRISON
From left, Lynn English basketball players Tommy Rijo, Javonte Edwards and Angel Soto stand arm-in-arm during a moment of silence for former coach Mike Carr, who died Friday following a battle with cancer.
By HAROLD RIVERA
LYNN — Lynn English boys basketball coach Steve Stranahan spoke with a heavy heart after the Bulldogs defeated Danvers, 81-52, on Tuesday night at Cavanagh Field House. Tuesday’s contest was English’s first game since the death of former coach Mike Carr, who led the Bulldogs program from 2010 until his passing last Friday. Carr’s death came after a year-long battle with cancer.
“Every win from here on out is special,” Stranahan, who will coach the Bulldogs for the remainder of the season, said. “He was my best friend. I’ve known him for years. He was a great friend of mine, so it’s special to me. I’m honored to be able to coach this team.”
Tuesday’s win is the second victory in a row for the Bulldogs, after English trounced Peabody 81-50 last Friday.
“It’s huge,” Stranahan said. “I wasn’t at the game Friday, I was in the hospital with Coach. When I heard what happened (at the game), it just made me feel so good. Coach would’ve loved it. Maybe he was here in the building.”
Stranahan added, “These guys have taken a lot of pride. They’re all ‘for Carr’ in the huddles, and they mean it. That’s what’s special.”
Ivenson Lopes and Sean Rooney traded threes in the opening minute of the game. English’s Javonte Edwards took over for the remainder of the first quarter, scoring eight points in the period. Dariel De Mota’s layup in the closing seconds of the quarter gave English a 19-11 lead after one.
Edwards carried his hot hand into the second quarter, knocking down a pair of jumpers to give English a 12-point lead at 23-11. Danvers answered the bell with a 7-0 spurt to cut the deficit to 26-20 behind a pair of baskets from Teddy Vaillancourt.
“We got up by 12 and they started coming back,” Stranahan recalled. “There was a timeout in the process and we just talked about it. When we play defense, we get after it. If we’re not playing defense, we’re an average team. That’s what coach Carr stressed. We’re not doing anything differently than he did.”
The Bulldogs responded with an 16-4 rally to close the second quarter. Calvin Seng hit a pair of threes in the process and English led 42-24 at the half. English made a total of nine threes in the win.
“We were trying to work off our transition baskets,” Stranahan said. “We got our threes in the flow of the game, inside-out knock-down threes. It adds a lot of energy.”
Edwards didn’t slow down in the second half. The junior forward scored ten points in the third quarter, including a layup and a jump shot in the final minute of the period. Tyshawn Anderson jumped into the scoresheet with a pair of buckets and the Bulldogs maintained their lead at 63-45 after three.
In the fourth, English’s victory was in the bag. The Bulldogs opened a 30-point advantage, their largest lead of the night, in the closing minutes of the game. Anderson scored six points in the quarter and English rolled to the win, 81-52.
Edwards led all scorers with 28 points.
“He’s (Edwards) a super athletic kid,” Stranahan said. “He’s playing with a lot of heart. These guys, they all are, with Coach Carr’s passing. He’s playing with pride in Coach Carr’s memory.”
Seng scored 19 points, including five makes from beyond the arc. Lopes added 14 points, while Anderson scored ten off the bench.
For Danvers, Rooney scored 11 points and Justin Roberto added ten.
English is back in action on Friday when the team visits Beverly.
Prior to Tuesday’s game, a moment of silence was held in Carr’s memory. The Bulldogs also wore black ribbons attached to their jerseys.
“Our old AD Gary Molea suggested it,” Stranahan said. “They did it for the girls game. We wore black ribbons in his memory. It’s all special to us.”
Carr’s funeral service will be on Thursday morning, at 9:30 a.m., at the Solimine Funeral Home.
