LYNN — The Classical boys basketball team held off a late push by Salem to earn a 59-56 win in the Rams’ season opener at Classical High School Friday night.
The Rams had to shake off some first-game jitters, but in the end they made enough plays to start the season on the right note. Brandon Summers and Jeff Barbosa led Classical with 13 points each. Jeff Hill Jr. wasn’t far behind with 11 points and Eusebio Quintana had a nice night coming off the bench with 10 points and four rebounds.
The Rams started this one off fast. Hill grabbed an early steal and Keon Griffin scored to get Classical started. Next, Hill dished assists on baskets from Barbosa and Jayden Thornton to give the Rams a 6-0 lead.
Classical pushed its lead to 8-0 before Salem started to find its footing. A four-point play from Ethan Doyle got the Witches going and Salem took advantage of a handful of missed Classical shots to cut the lead to 13-12 after the first quarter.
It was just the start of a momentum shift in Salem’s favor.
“We came out alright,” Classical coach Jasper Grassa said. “But that second quarter, things changed. (Salem) was in the 3-2 (defense). We have some shooters but I was telling them if it’s not going you have to go to the hoop. It took awhile for them to get it.”
While the Rams were adjusting, Salem continued to take advantage. Bobby Jellison hit a 3-pointer to tie things at 17-17 and the Witches came out of a timeout on a six-point run to go ahead 23-17.
But the Rams responded with a much-needed 10-point run before the break. Summers capped off that run with a 3-pointer that beat the halftime buzzer and give Classical a 27-23 lead.
“It was huge,” Grassa said of the run. “I felt like they had all the momentum at that point. Basketball is a game of runs so I’m glad we could get one before the end of the half. Then it ended up working out for us in the second half.”
Things stayed tight in the third quarter but Classical was able to hold onto a slim lead thanks to threes from Thornton and Summers. Quintana capped off the period with another Classical buzzer-beater from mid range to give the Rams a 41-36 lead heading into the fourth.
“I thought we did a pretty good job in the second half getting the ball inside,” Grassa said. “Even if it was a 3-pointer, we got to the foul line and it was a kick out 3-pointer. It wasn’t just us passing around and shooting a contested one.”
The Rams held onto that lead, even stretching it to 53-42 with two minutes left to play, but Salem wasn’t ready to go home without a fight.
The Witches knocked down three 3-pointers, two from Doyle and one from Tommy Beauregard to climb back into things. Luckily, Classical was able to make enough free throws to cling onto a 59-56 lead in the final seconds
The Witches drew up their final play with 10 seconds to go but a 3-pointer from Jellison’s missed the mark and the Rams walked away with the win.
“We just have to stay disciplined,” Grassa said. “We can’t be going for steals with a minute left. You just have to stay solid. But that will come as the season goes. We did everything we could to lose this game in the last couple minutes there.”
Classical (1-0) has a few days off before travelling to Winthrop Tuesday (7).
