The Peabody boys basketball team picked up a Northeastern Conference win on Tuesday night, as the Tanners defeated Salem, 59-53, to improve their record to 8-5 on the season.
“Salem’s a fantastic team,” Peabody coach Thad Broughton said. “This is a big win for us. We were down in the third quarter and we made a nice comeback.”
Leading the Tanners in the win was Chris Canela, who scored 16 points and grabbed six rebounds. Avian Hernandez scored 13 points with eight rebounds and six steals. Jake Irvine added 13 points with four rebounds and four steals. Marcus Barker grabbed eight rebounds and dished out six steals.
The Tanners host Marblehead on Friday night (7).
“Marblehead’s a very well-coached, tough team every year,” Broughton said. “We’ll have our hands full for sure.”
For the Witches, Nate Lebron scored 18 points and grabbed seven rebounds. Isaiah Williamson tallied 14 points and seven rebounds.
Salem (7-7) visits Revere Friday.
“We need to get some wins,” Witches coach Tom Doyle said. “That’s the goal right now, to qualify for the state tournament. We have six games left and we need three wins so we need to win half of them.”
Classical 57, Malden 55
Jaylen Johnson hit the game-winning basket on a lay-up at the buzzer. The Rams had possession with seven seconds left, locked in a 55-55 tie, before Johnson drove the ball up the court and snuck his way into the paint for the game-winner in heavy traffic. With the win, Classical improved to 10-3 on the season and clinched a spot in the state tournament.
Dyrrell Rucker scored 13 points and played solid defense. Edwin Solis grabbed 15 rebounds.
The Rams host Medford Friday night (7).
English 80, Revere 52
Matheus Montenairo led English with 20 points, while Javonte Edwards and Alonzo Linton each added 14 points. The Bulldogs (12-1) visit Danvers Friday (7).
For Revere, EJ Leone scored 16 points and grabbed six rebounds, Omar Bendjahene scored 12 points and Marcus Brunson-Perez added six points with seven rebounds and five assists. The Patriots host Saugus tonight (7).
Tech 80, Greater Lowell 75
It was Belmin Berilo’s night at Greater Lowell. Berilo could do no wrong, scoring 36 points while draining seven 3-pointers in the win. Rob Wallace logged a double-double at 24 points and 10 rebounds, and Tre Baldwin scored 10 points with eight rebounds and eight assists.
“I like the way we’re moving right now,” Tech coach Stevie Patrick said. “After the Hamilton-Wenham game, I could tell that we are where we should be at this point in the season.”
The Tigers (9-5) battle Whittier Tech Thursday. A win gets Tech into the state tournament.
Everett 84, Swampscott 34
Everett’s Ghared Boyce scored 37 points to become the all-time leading scorer in Crimson Tide program history.
Swampscott’s Jake McIntire scored nine points and Jake Goldman added eight points.
The Big Blue (3-8) visit Winthrop Friday (7).
“We know Winthrop’s always a competitive and tough team,” Big Blue coach Justin Fucile said. “It’s always a battle against them. It’s almost a rivalry game because we’re two similarly-sized schools. We know they have two great players and great group contributors around them. I’m expecting a clean, competitive basketball game.”
Medford 51, Saugus 35
Mike Mabee scored 17 points and Mason Nickolas added 11. The Sachems (2-10) visit Revere tonight (7).
St. John’s Prep 72, Xaverian 48
Nate Hobbs led St. John’s with 17 points and Matt Relihan contributed with 12. The Eagles improved to 10-4 and host Catholic Conference rival BC High Friday (7).
