LYNN — As they say in sports: Someone’s O has got to go.
In a showdown between two undefeated teams, Peabody’s basketball team kept things spotless at 4-0, while host KIPP fell to 2-1.
In the 75-49 final, the Tanners jumped to a commanding lead of 24-6 after the first quarter. The Panthers put on a great second quarter, however, cutting the lead to single digits at one point before trailing 34-23 at halftime.
KIPP coach Moody Bey said, “We had our peaks and valleys.”
“That’s the flow of any high school basketball game,” he said. “It’s still December. We don’t expect them to put together a full 32 minutes yet – that’s towards late January, early February, when the playoffs are around the corner.”
Come the second half, that’s when Peabody started to force KIPP into turnovers.
With mixes of a zone and 1-2-2 press, the Tanners got easy baskets in transition to extend the lead.
“KIPP played really tough in their own gym. It was back and forth, and I think in the second half, we got a couple of steals and a couple of turnovers and converted into hoops. I think that was the difference tonight,” said Peabody coach Thad Broughton. “It’s always tough getting wins on the road and I think our defense really buckled down. We were a little shaky in the first, but credit to KIPP. I thought they played really well.”
The Tanners have the luxury of two great guards who do a bit of everything to make the well-oiled machine run smoothly: Raphel Laurent (28 points) and Anthony Forte (22).
It was Laurent in the first half, scoring 17 first-quarter points, then Forte in the second half, scoring 14 across the bottom two quarters.
“Both of them can handle the ball and score. They’re also two great defenders. All around, they’re great players,” Broughton said. “We lean on those guys and rely on them and certainly tonight when it got tight, we looked at them to lead us.”
Bey praised the opposing backcourt, adding it’s “rare in the MIAA to find a team with two college-level players.”
For the Panthers, a positive was the performance of Ryan Damian, who scored 12 points – all from distance – to try and spark KIPP’s offense.
“Ryan was one of the few bright spots for us tonight. He is an awesome kid. He’s always the best shooter in the gym and I’ll argue with anyone on that,” Bey said. “The last two years, he showed up every day at practice, worked hard, and bought in. Whether it was defending hard or motivating, he put the work in. He sat out some games in which he knew he was talented enough to play. He came in tonight and did all the right things. I’m so happy and proud he got his moment today because he deserves it, and I think moving forward, we’re going to see a lot more Ryan.”
The Tanners outscored the Panthers 21-12 in the third quarter which all but sealed the game, giving Peabody another tough win on the road.
Despite Peabody (Division 1) and KIPP (Division 5) playing in different divisions, Bey is looking forward to the return leg when the two face off again in a few weeks.
“They’re a really talented team. We play them again and I’m excited to play them again,” Bey said. “I always say the real season starts after your first loss. Tomorrow’s practice is going to tell me everything I need to know about the team. I believe tomorrow will be our best practice of the year.”
The Tanners look to remain unbeaten when they travel to Manchester-Essex next Wednesday, while the Panthers look towards next week when they take on Lynn Tech.
