TEWKSBURY — The KIPP Academy boys basketball team’s historic season came to a close Friday night when the No. 2 Panthers fell to No. 9 Pope John, 50-42 in the Division 4 North final at Tewksbury High’s Tony Romano Court.
KIPP didn’t go out without a fight, battling back from an 11-point halftime deficit to make things interesting in the final minutes. However, the Panthers slow start was the difference in the end.
“We just needed to execute,” KIPP coach David White said. “Execution of the game plan and making shots. We didn’t make shots in the first half. That was the difference. That was probably the worst we shot all year. We had the looks we wanted we just weren’t making them.”
Aboul Barry led the Panthers with 13 points and 10 rebounds. However, Barry fouled out with 1:57 remaining and his absence made a huge difference in the final minutes, White said.
“It had a huge impact,” White said. “He’s so active on the boards and a huge scorer for us. He is a senior and I think he kind of got it taken away from him in his last game of the year.”
Winfred Sanchez also had a big night for KIPP scoring 13 points while hauling in six rebounds.
Pope John got off to a fast start thanks to the shooting game of Angel Price-Espada (19 points), who went 3-of-4 from beyond the arch to help the Tigers take a commanding 11-point lead in the first quarter.
Meanwhile the Panthers’ offense struggled from the start with a handful of missed shots mixed in with some costly turnovers. The only points the KIPP offense could create were in the paint with Aboul Barry scoring two baskets in the first.
Trailing 15-4 going into the second quarter, KIPP put together a small run. Sanchez and Aboul Barry netted back-to-back baskets and cut the deficit to seven. Later in the second Algha Barry hit a 3-pointer to cut the Pope John lead to 19-11. But Pope John went on a 4-1 run to end the half with Mekhi Collins hitting three free throws. Pope John took a 23-12 lead into the break.
The Panthers came out hot in the third quarter. KIPP scored three straight baskets to cut the Tigers’ lead to five before a timeout. Later in the third Sanchez hit a key 3-pointer and Aboul Barry netted a basket to cut the Pope John lead to 27-25.
J’ddon Vincent hit another three late in the third quarter to cap the run and give the Panthers their first lead of the game at 31-29.
Another key change that sparked KIPP’s comeback was having Pius Robert shadow Price-Espada on defense in the second half. Robert limited Price-Espada to just two points in the third quarter.
“We just wanted to make it difficult on (Price-Espada),” White said. “He’s a fantastic player. We just wanted to make him work for his points. Roberts did a great job on him.”
The fourth quarter saw a few lead changes before the Tigers regained a two-possession edge. With a few minutes remaining Sanchez converted an and-one to cut the Tigers lead to 38-37.
But that was as close as the Panthers would get. With Aboul Barry fouled out, the Tigers took full advantage on offense. Collins and Price-Espada combined for 10 late points to finish the win for Pope John and end KIPP’s season.
The Panthers end at 17-6 and White’s proud of what his team accomplished.
“We came up short from our ultimate goal,” White said. “We knew we could compete for a state championship coming into the MIAA. We came up short but I’m proud of these guys. They fought hard and worked hard all year. We dealt with a lot of adversity and I’m just proud of the way they handled themselves as young men.”