Spencer’s put-back at the buzzer gives the Cardinals a 76-74 win in a thriller.
WHITMAN – In one of the best high school games one will witness, the Cardinal Spellman boys basketball team defeated Whitman-Hanson, 76-74, Tuesday night on senior Mike Spencer’s put-back from just to the right of the basket at the buzzer in front of an enthusiastic and appreciative crowd.
Spencer, who seemed to be in the right place near the basket all game, had a game-high 26 points while senior point guard Admar Jaramillo (Brockton) and sharp-shooting sophomore Craig Faria (Brockton) chipped in with 20 apiece.
Whitman-Hanson senior captains Jacob Hanson-Bartlett and Sean Leahy poured in 23 and 18 points, respectively, to lead the Panthers, while senior Bryan Tyre came off the bench and added 14.
The non-league win improved the Cardinals’ record to 8-2 while the Panthers fell to 5-3.
“That was as good a high school game as you will see,” said a disappointed Panthers coach Bob Rodgers. “It came down to who had the ball last.”
The contest had all the makings of a sectional final, with both squads competing at a high level.
The Panthers took the early lead (10-4) in the first quarter behind the spirited offensive play of Leahy and Hanson-Bartlett and a 1-3-1 zone defense that seemed to confuse the Cardinals.
Whitman-Hanson extended its lead to 22-10 with under a minute left in the quarter behind a pair of deep 3-pointers by Hanson-Bartlett and rising sophomore Max Borgen.
The Cardinals responded after a timeout with two quick baskets by Faria and Tyrone Smith-McCray (Brockton) to close the gap to 22-14 at the end of the first quarter.
In the second quarter, the Panthers took another double-digit lead, 36-22, on Leahy’s rainbow 3-pointer from the right corner with 3:33 left.
But the Cardinals, behind Spencer (Abington) and Faria, went on a 13-7 run to close the Panthers’ lead to 43-35 at the half.
“It took us a while to figure out how to attack their zone defense,” said Cardinals coach Mike Perry. “They have such length, which is tough to prepare for.”
The third quarter saw the Panthers retain their lead, 50-42, at the 3:56 mark, but the lead quickly evaporated when Jaramillo drained a 3-pointer and followed that with a 15-footer to close the gap to 50-47.
Faria’s kiss off the glass on a perfectly executed inbounds pass and a plus-one evened the score at 50 with three minutes left in the quarter.
The Panthers, behind the superb passing and shooting of Leahy and Hanson-Bartlett, finished the quarter on a 10-0 run to take a 60-50 lead into the fourth quarter.
In the final quarter the Cardinals started to chip away at the Panthers’ lead and they tied the game at 67 on Jamarillo’s deep 3-pointer with 3:20 left.
A Spencer put-back gave Spellman its first lead of the gam, 69-67, but Leahy’s scoop knotted the score at 69 with 2:35 left.
After Tyre gave the Panthers a brief lead at 71-69, sophomore Mike Marshall (Weymouth) came off the bench to nail a 3-pointer for a 72-71 Spellman lead at the 2:05 mark.
Spellman, on Spencer’s rebound, extended the lead to 74-71, but Borgen drained a deep 3-pointer from the top of the key to knot the score at 74 with 30 seconds left.
Spellman held the final possession and, after a shot from the left misfired, Spencer gathered the rebound and scored as the buzzer sounded.
“It was a great high school game, ” said Perry. “Any time you come to this building and leave with a win you feel very fortunate.”
Perhaps lost in the excitement of the final few minutes of play was Spellman’s Jamarillo, who eclipsed the 1,000-point mark in his varsity career.
“I feel fortunate to reach the mark,” said Jamarillo, who fouled out with a minute to go. “But more importantly I raised our energy level in the second half and that helped us get the win.”