LYNN — Swampscott’s boys basketball team led 36-30 with eight minutes remaining in a closely-contested matchup between the Big Blue and Lynn Classical in the consolidation game of the Spartan Classic. Swampscott held onto that lead, holding Classical to just eight points in the final quarter to give the Big Blue a 49-38 victory.
Swampscott locked in on defense, especially senior Max Brodsky (9 points) who closed things out.
With 6:10 remaining, Brodsky stripped the ball from a Classical guard and raced down the court before rising and throwing down a one handed-dunk – much to the delight of the Big Blue supporters.
A few possessions later, it was Brodsky again who scored a layup off a steal to give Swampscott a 46-35 lead.
“Him [Brodsky] and Henry Beuttler both played extremely hard on the defensive end and closed in on those gaps, making sure we had hands in the passing lanes,” Swampscott head coach Jason Knowles said. “I think that was a big reason behind our success today on the defensive end.”
Classical, which looked like it wasn’t ready for the 10:30 a.m. tip-off, struggled early. The Big Blue got out to a 9-2 lead five minutes into the first quarter.
“In basketball, you need to get out to a fast start and we got out to a slow start,” Classical head coach Marvin Avery said. “You have to stay competitive and we didn’t do that. They took advantage of our size; they did a good job.”
Knowles enjoyed how his team’s defense adjusted from its previous matchup against the Rams earlier this season.
“The last game we played them, we didn’t do a very good job stopping the initial dribble [and] they were able to get wherever they wanted,” Knowles said. “That was a point of emphasis at yesterday’s practice to make sure we make them have difficult shots and no rhythm threes.”
The Rams were held without a field goal until the 2:20 mark of the first quarter. But once they made their first basket, everything changed.
Marvin Avery Jr. (12 points) connected on a corner three before Daron Guillen buried another to complete an 8-0 Classical run to cut things to two (12-10) later in the half.
The Big Blue took a 30-22 lead into halftime.
In the third quarter, the defensive intensity from the Rams picked up. They were diving on the floor for loose balls, getting deflections, and battling in the paint.
A steal and score from Almani Gerardo (8 points) capped an 8-0 run to get the game to within two (32-30).
“That’s what we stressed at halftime. Our defense has been with us all year because of our athletic ability,” Avery said.
With Swampscott missing one of its leading scorers in Connor Chiarello, it needed someone to step up. Monday, it was Liam Wales (14 points).
Knowles described Wales’s performance as “gutty.”
“He played injured with a bummed hip and battled through it. He came out a couple of times to ice it, but [it was a] gutsy performance by him,” Knowles said.
