PEABODY — The Bishop Fenwick boys basketball team had no answers for St. Mary’s on Friday night, as the Spartans came into enemy territory and dominated from start to finish, polishing off a 90-60 win to improve to 13-1.
The No. 1 ranked team in Division 2, St. Mary’s got a complete team performance with 11 players getting into the points column.
Rolky Brea-Arias (8 rebounds) led the Spartans with 17 points. Gabriel Makuwa-Sykes notched a double-double with 15 points and 14 rebounds. Jake Fortier and John Chareas each scored 15.
Fenwick’s OG Pashoto also recorded a double-double with 17 points and 14 rebounds. Damon Mataragas added 15 points, while Jake Bellacini chipped in 12.
“I thought the guys played great tonight,” St. Mary’s coach Josh Keilty said. “We shared the ball. They took good shots. We were really active on the glass. I thought we did a nice job defensively in the first half and had a nice start. We’re just trying to do things we talk about every day.”
“We competed pretty hard tonight, but they’re just a really good team,” Fenwick coach Chris Timson said. “They’re relentless and just don’t take anything off. It’s hard to match that. That’s a team you have to look up to and strive to get to that level.”
The game was fast paced from the get-go. St. Mary’s jumped out to a quick 16-4 lead midway through the first quarter after a Fortier steal and coast-to-coast layup. Fenwick got the lead back to single digits, 16-7, after an old-fashioned three-point play from Bellacini.
It was all St. Mary’s from there, as the Spartans closed the half with a thunderous dunk from Makuwa-Sykes to take a 51-29 lead into the break.
The Spartans kept their foot on the gas in the third, bumping the lead to 72-47 heading into the final eight minutes, setting the stage for both teams to empty their benches with about four minutes to play.
Makuwa-Sykes credited the Spartans’ early defense and patience on offense for setting the tone of the game.
“We just tried to rush their offense and play unselfishly to the game plan,” he said. “We put the team first and made the extra pass on offense. Our coaches emphasize it’s about hard work to the point where sometimes our practices are harder than games.”
Keilty said good shot selection was key.
“We were really patient and fighting for that best shot,” he said. “I’m really happy with that tonight.”
Keilty credited the play of Fortier.
“He’s got to be the most underrated guard around here,” Keilty said. “It’s so hard for players to keep up with him. He’s such a hard worker and a tremendous player, as you saw tonight.”
Timson highlighted the two-way play of Pashoto.
“He’s really turned the corner over the last few months,” Timson said. “He just competes every play. He’s relentless, but we have to get other kids to match that and if we can do that, we’ll be fine.”
“We scored 60 points tonight, which was great,” Timson added. “I looked at the other coaches and said, ‘Wow, that’s pretty good for us.’ We’ve had quarters where we’ve only scored four points, so we’re building and will continue to build.”
Timson also liked what he saw from Mataragas, Bellacini and Jackson Armata (4 points, 4 rebounds).
“Damon played really well tonight and is just hard-nosed,” Timson said. “Jackson came off the bench and played well. He gave us a good spark. Jake hit a couple of big shots for us in that second half, so there definitely were some positives.”
The Spartans’ next game is Wednesday at Salem at 7 p.m.
“Salem’s really tough,” Keilty said. “I’m expecting another challenging game.”
Fenwick’s next game is Sunday at noon against Peabody, when the Crusaders (2-11) hope to complete a season sweep of the Tanners.
“We beat them before, but every team is different every time you play them,” Timson said. “We have to come back with better energy and effort, and hopefully we’ll come out with a win.”
