GREAT BARRINGTON — Noah Hambley and the Tigers exorcised some demons in the Berkshires Thursday night.
Returning to the same gym at Monument Mountain that spelt the end of their Western Mass. Class B Tournament run last winter, the fifth-seeded South Hadley boys survived an overtime thriller, 68-67.
No. 4 Monument got a floater near the regulation buzzer from Finn Wheeler to knot the game at 57-all, but the Spartans struggled to find an answer for Hambley all night.
The Tiger guard finished with a game-high 36 points, going 8-of-8 from the foul line and knocking down six 3-pointers. He had 17 points in the first half, canned two triples in the fourth quarter and was 6-of-6 from the foul line in overtime, scoring eight of his team’s 11 points in the extra period.
On the other end, the Tigers struggled equally with an answer for big man Dom Calautti. Calautti dominated South Hadley in last year’s semifinal, which the Spartans won handily 86-64 on their way to both a Class B title and MIAA State Championship appearance. He was nearly as good Thursday, finishing with 16 points and 18 rebounds. He grabbed a board with 2:04 left in overtime and was fouled on the putback. The senior hit both free throws to tie the game at 62.
Then it was South Hadley’s Isiah James making the play of the game. With fives sets of Spartan eyes on Hambley on the perimeter, James made a beauty of a backdoor cut and scored on the feed to put his team back in front. James finished with 18 points, hitting four 3s.
And in front was where they stayed. The teams traded turnovers with stamina waning, but when South Hadley rebounded a Monument miss inside the final 30 seconds, the Spartans had to foul. Hambley sank a pair with 29.7 seconds left to go up four. At the other end another Calautti offensive rebound nearly caused extra problems. He scored and was fouled, with Tiger big Tim Loughrey exiting with his fifth personal. But Calautti couldn’t convert the and-1 and the lead stayed at 66-64.
Hambley got the ball and was sent back to the line where his two free throws made it an all-important two-possession game with 18.3 seconds left.
Monument burned too much time, missing its first look from 3, but getting another crack. Wheeler popped in a corner trey, but with virtually no time left. The Tigers inbounded cleanly and by the skin of their canines, escaped Great Barrington with a slot in the semifinals.
South Hadley will tangle with No. 1 Sci-Tech next round with a shot to play for the Western Mass. Class B title on the line.
Non-playoff results
Boys basketball
Granby 55, Smith Voc 45 — The Rams won their second non-tournament game in a row in the victory over the Vikings.
Zavien Fernandez posted 25 points for Granby. Smith Voc received 16 points from Dom Sanchez in the loss.
Westfield (Vt.) 60, Smith Academy 32 — Cajun Benson concluded the loss with nine points to pace the Falcons.
Girls basketball
Easthampton 55, Mount Greylock 45 — The Eagles soared past the Mounties on the strength of a stellar game from Samone Young.
Easthampton’s top scorer finished with 20 points, including eight in the first quarter alone.
Northampton 57, Chicopee Comp 14 — The Blue Devils rolled past the Colts in a non-tournament tilt.
Anna Oravec dropped 21 points for Northampton.
