LYNN — When the boys basketball schedule was released months ago, the first matchup many probably circled was Lynn Classical against Lynn English.
Tuesday night, the two traditional rivals squared off for the first time this season. Continuing last year’s dominance, the Bulldogs pulled away to earn a 78-58 win.
Basketball is a game of runs, and this one had plenty of them. The Bulldogs started the third quarter on a big run to get the lead up to 27 (57-30).
The Rams wouldn’t go down without a fight, however – just how coach Marvin Avery likes it.
Classical went on an 18-4 run to close the third quarter (61-48).
“Basketball is a game of runs and our athletic ability brought us back into the game,” Avery said. “We just couldn’t capitalize on a few things. I’m not taking away anything from English – that’s a very good basketball team that has some size and athleticism.”
His son and starting point guard Marvin Avery Jr. (17 points) had his hand in the comeback, taking the ball to the paint and finishing above taller opponents.
“We never quit. We just kept playing hard,” Coach Avery said. “We were relentless. That’s what I’m all about, taking pride in our defense.
The Rams trailed by just 13 entering the fourth quarter, but the Bulldogs were ready for a run of their own – taking things into high gear.
English went on a 15-6 run late, highlighted by a strong Carmelo Buese layup.
“It’s no secret that the two losses we have this season, we lost in the fourth quarter. That’s what we want to clean up,” said English coach Alvin Abreu. “I told the guys that we’ve had the lead in the fourth quarter before and that we need to close this game out. We still have work to do, but we were able to push the lead in the fourth.”
Buese finished the game with 21 points, including 11 in the final quarter.
“I’m very proud of Carmelo. He’s our senior. He’s been in a bit of a slump lately and he played like a senior tonight,” Abreu said. “He changed the game with his energy and defensive pressure, always running the court.”
“Melo is the hardest-working player in our program. It’s always good to see a kid who works as hard as he does get rewarded like he did today,” Abreu said. “He’s been in a slump because he was thinking too much. I told him to play loose and to do what he does.”
Abreu mentioned that after the loss to St. Mary’s in last week’s Walter J. Boverini tournament, he challenged his team to respond.
“I was hard on them and wanted to see how they would respond. They responded against KIPP and, tonight, we wanted to see how they responded again – primarily on the defensive end,” said Abreu, a former star at Lynn Classical. “I still want to clean up our turnovers. We had too many tonight.”
For Classical, Avery believes the New Year will come with plenty of positives.
“We just need to clean up the turnovers and everything else is going to take care of itself,” Avery said. “It’s not a sprint, it’s a marathon. As a head coach, I’ve been around this block long enough to know that we’ll get it right.”
It was the “defensive pressure” Abreu enjoyed most from his team’s performance, among other characteristics.
“Our body language was better today and the kids played together and had fun,” Abreu said. “We’re just going to continue to work.”
Classical’s next game is Thursday when it travels to Somerville for a 7 p.m. showdown. The Bulldogs will travel to Chelsea the same day with tip-off scheduled for 6 p.m.
