LYNN— Getting the new season started on the right foot has been the top objective for the Lynn Tech boys basketball team thus far. The Tigers dropped their first eight games last season and found themselves with a steep hill to climb in the second half.
However, that was last year and things are much different for Tech in the early going this winter. Tuesday night’s 73-16 win over Presentation of Mary Academy at Tech proved that the Tigers, 3-0 on the year, are committed to starting this season the right way.
“To be honest, our last two games haven’t been tests,” Tech coach Stevie Patrick said. “I’m a little concerned about getting to the more serious teams that’ll be tougher tests for us but I think we’ll be ready. We’re a lot better than we were at the start of the season in terms of our confidence and mentally.”
Senior Belmin Berilo led all scorers with 22 points, while junior Rob Wallace totalled 12 points and senior Jama Aroni added nine points. Junior Buba Ceesay finished with nine points in the winning effort. The closest PMA could whittle the score to was 14 points in the opening quarter, as Tech was in full control from start to finish.
Tech’s stingy defense gave PMA headaches throughout the first quarter. The Tigers forced the Panthers to commit multiple turnovers and cashed them in for easy buckets on the other end of the floor. Tech scored the first 15 points of the game before a PMA free throw put the Panthers on the scoreboard. Berilo tallied seven points in the quarter to lead Tech to a 24-6 advantage at the end of the first period.
“Our coaching staff has been preaching the three e’s, which are effort, execution and enthusiasm,” Patrick, in his second season directing the Tigers, said. “We’ve had that in practice and in games. As long as we can do that, I think we’ll be successful in anything we do.”
The Tigers’ lead ballooned into the 30’s in the second quarter. Wallace paced Tech with eight points in the quarter, plowing his way into the paint for clean looks at the basket and aiding the Tigers to a 45-10 lead at halftime. John Marino joined in on the fun with a lay-in and by the end of the first half, during which Tech featured nine different scorers.
“We’ve improved our ball control,” Patrick said. “Last year we turned the ball over a lot. In this game we only had seven turnovers. For us, that’s a good deal. Last season we’d have seven turnovers in one quarter. I’m happy about that.”
With a hefty lead in its favor, Tech played a relaxed brand of basketball in the second half. Ceesay swished a pair of 3-pointers in the quarter and the Tigers led by 49 points, 61-12, after three periods.
Tech’s lead reached into the 60’s in the fourth quarter and the Tigers were well on their way to their third victory of the season.
The Panthers were held to just six points in the second half.
“We’re buying into our defense,” Patrick said. “We’d rather play defense first. In practice, we work more on our offense because we’re so confident and secure in our defense. I feel that if we play defense the correct way, we can play with anyone. We might not beat anyone but we can play with anyone if we play our defense the right way.”
Despite the 3-0 start to the season, Patrick sees a few areas for improvement moving forward. Tech missed a number of clean looks at the basket during Tuesday’s win over the Panthers and Patrick hopes his team can fix that as the season progresses.
“I’d say we need to improve on our execution,” Patrick said. “Our big men also need to finish better but that’s on us as coaches. We have to get in there and work with them, teach them how to fake and go up strong. We missed a lot of easy shots tonight even though we got the win.”
The Tigers are back in action on Thursday night when they visit Commonwealth Athletic Conference rival Chelsea. Patrick believes the Red Devils will provide a solid test for his Tigers.
“I told the guys that we’re 3-0 but it doesn’t really feel like 3-0 to me,” Patrick said. “I think we haven’t played as well as we can play and we haven’t had our best test. Chelsea will be a big test for us on Thursday night. If we can get that win, our 4-0 record will feel like we’re 8-0.”
