AMHERST — Northampton took four cracks at a one-point deficit in the final minute of the Western Massachusetts Division 2 championship game.
None of them fell, and the Taconic boys basketball team outlasted the Blue Devils, 44-43, to win its first sectional title since 1977. The Braves will face Central Mass. champion Shepherd Hill at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday at Worcester State.
Jaeden Johndrow took Northampton’s first shot at a potential winner with 1 minute, 2 seconds left on a left-handed layup after a drop step. It sailed over the rim.
Ben Pion stripped the ball on Taconic’s next possession to give the Blue Devils another shot. Out of a timeout with 25.4 seconds left, Diego Corrada-Mattei drove and shot a right-handed floater with 14 seconds left. Taconic (16-7) grabbed the rebound, but Corrada-Mattei immediately forced a tie-up.
“We knock those shots down enough times to feel like it’s a good shot,” Northampton coach Ray Harp said.
The possession arrow went to Northampton.
Andy Grygorcewicz took a straight-on 3 with 8 seconds left that bounced off the inside of the rim.
“It was seconds winding down, so I thought it was the best shot we had,” he said.
Taconic grabbed another rebound, and Northampton fouled immediately. Taconic senior Javier Osorio missed the front end of a one-and-one with 4.1 seconds showing. Grygorcewicz snatched the rebound then lofted a pass to Johndrow as he passed the half-court line. Johndrow dribbled once and fired with two Taconic defenders around him. The shot fell short and left.
“Everything had to be contested,” Taconic coach William Heaphy said. “We had to make everything difficult.”
Northampton (15-7) held Taconic without a point for the game’s final 4:11 to even put itself in that position. The Braves didn’t score after Christian Womble hit a 3 to make it 44-38.
Six was Northampton’s biggest deficit. The Blue Devils pulled back to a one-possession game when Michael McCarthy made 1-of-2 free throws with 2:47 left. He scored a game-high 16 points for the Blue Devils.
“He had a breakout game that looks a lot like business as usual,” Harp said. “He stepped up his play in the bright lights of the Western Mass. final.”
Corrada-Mattei cut the deficit to 1 with a layup with 1:59 left after he attacked in transition. That was the last basket of the game.
Taconic dictated its style of play from the opening possession when the Braves forced a deflection after Northampton won the tip.
“They did all the little things, and we weren’t executing the little things we needed to,” Corrada-Mattei said.
Taconic led 10-9 after the first quarter and 24-19 at halftime.
“It was a rock fight first half,” Heaphy said. “There wasn’t a lot of finesse basketball offensively going on.”
The Braves maintained their defensive intensity for the rest of the game, and it was enough.
The loss marked the end of the careers of seven Northampton seniors: Elliott Wills, Grygorcewicz, Pion, Corrada-Mattei, Javonte Grant, Kiernan Thurston, Brad Moreau and Henry Doherty.
“These guys show up every day and give us effort Northampton can be proud of,” Harp said. “It’s sad we lost the game, we lost the championship, but I’m proud of the way my seniors met the challenge.”
Kyle Grabowski can be reached at kgrabowski@gazettenet.com.
Taconic 44, Northampton 43
Taconic (16-7)
Wombie 2-0-6, Wittens 3-6-12, Davis 1-0-3, Osorio 3-0-7, Percy 4-0-9, Sayers 1-0-2, McGowan 0-2-2, Sanogo 1-1-3. Totals 15-9-44
Northampton (15-7)
Wills 1-0-3, Corrada-Mattei 4-2-11, Grygorcewicz 2-3-7, McCarthy 4-8-16, Moreau 1-0-2, Johndrow 2-0-4, Pion 0-0-0. Totals 14-13-43
|
Taconic |
10 |
14 |
12 |
8 |
—44 |
|
Northampton |
9 |
10 |
13 |
11 |
—43 |
3-Pointers—Taconic 5 (Wombie 2, Davis, Osorio, Percy), Northampton 2 (Wills, Corrada-Mattei)