PEABODY — When you’re in the state tournament, it doesn’t matter if you win by 20 or by one – all that matters is the win. And on Tuesday night, in a packed gym filled with Peabody supporters, the No. 21 Tanners got their first tournament win in 19 years with a 67-66 victory against No. 44 Medford.
“A win is a win,” Peabody head coach Thad Broughton said.
The scoreline reflects the close battle between the two programs, but it wasn’t always. Peabody held a 15-point lead (57-42) going into the final quarter.
The Mustangs started the quarter on a 7-0 run, which grew to a 19-5 run cutting the lead to just one (62-61) with less than three minutes remaining.
On Peabody’s next possession, it was its leading scorer, Anthony Forte, who made it happen to end the run at the free throw line.
“The two free throws at the end were huge to give us a three-point lead,” Broughton said.
Up one, Peabody’s junior forward Johnny Lucas drove the ball and made a layup to put the hosts ahead by three with just 10 seconds remaining.
Unfortunately, Peabody overcommitted on a three-point contest and sent Medford’s senior captain Sam Orcutt to the line with a chance to tie it with only 4.4 seconds left. The senior showed his composure, making all three free throws to tie it up.
Peabody needed to go the entire court for a chance to win, but an aggressive Medford defender fouled junior guard Raphel Laurent (15 points) as he caught the ball, sending him to the line with three seconds left.
With the visiting fans trying to distract Laurent, he buried the first free throw. And while he missed the second, it led to the clock starting immediately on the Mustangs, who eventually saw the clock run out on them.
“Raphel hitting that free throw at the end with the crowd going nuts – it was just huge for him to come through like that,” Broughton said.
“I got to give Medford a ton of credit,” Broughton said. “We were up by 20 and they made an unbelievable comeback. It was an unbelievable game.”
Not only did Medford make a big comeback, but the Mustangs ended both the first and second quarters with buzzer-beaters.
But in the first half, the Tanners were everywhere on offense and defense. It was their pressure on defense that got them steals and easy transition points.
“It was a tale of two halves. First half we were great, second half we really struggled and just did enough to hold on,” Broughton said.
Forte scored 13 of his game-high 28 points in the second quarter, driving the ball while also making shots from distance. He was also the point-man on defense, trapping effectively and diving on the floor for loose balls.
“He hit some big shots in the first half to really get us going,” Broughton said.
Peabody will travel to face the No. 12 Xaverian Brothers Friday night with tip-off scheduled for 6:30.
