By Allison Goldsmith
I&M Sports Editor
After assembling a six-game winning streak over the past month, the boys basketball team lost at Cohasset on Saturday afternoon, 70-61.
The loss dropped the playoff-bound Whalers to 11-3 overall this season. The Skippers will be on-island Saturday for a rematch of the Whalers’ first loss since Jan. 3 against Avon. Tip-off is scheduled for 1 p.m.
Also on the schedule this week, the Whalers will wrap up their Lighthouse Conference schedule by traveling to Sturgis Thursday and Provincetown Tuesday. Nantucket is 4-0 in conference games so far this season.
In preparation for Saturday’s rematch with Cohasset, the Whalers are looking to stress a more physical inside game. After losing key personnel under the hoop, Nantucket was out-rebounded last Saturday as the Skippers dominated in the paint.
“We are trying to get better on the inside. That is one of our goals, to box out and rebound. We don’t have a lot of depth like we used to when we had Delroy (Lawrence) and (Jordan) Beans,” head coach Beau Almodobar said.
The Whalers struggled on offense against the Skippers, shooting two-for-30 mark from beyond the three-point line.
“That tells it all. We were coming down and trying to blow the team out with three-pointers and not get the ball inside and be patient,” Almodobar said. “We have to learn patience and we have to learn some good shot selection.”
Andriquez Farmer led Nantucket with 25 points while Jordan Ferreira knocked down 20. Kevin Stanton had four points, 14 rebounds and nine blocked shots inside, while Josh Butler had two points and six rebounds.
The Whalers were down 38-28 at the half, but battled back with an 8-0 run behind solid defense and fast breaks to take the lead with 3:15 remaining in the game. Despite finding a rhythm late, Nantucket was not able to hold the hot hand and the Skippers climbed ahead. The Whalers were forced to foul to stop the clock, leading to the nine-point margin of victory.
“We were down pretty much the whole game. They came out storming on us and they just out-rebounded us on the boards. They were getting a lot of second shots and putting them back in,” Almodobar said. “The last three minutes of the game when it’s tight we have to play really good defense. The team that plays the best defense down the stretch is going to win if it’s close.”
Cohasset was led by Danny Martin with 16 points, including 11 in the second half, and Justin Alexander with 15 points.
“It seemed like every time he got it, he would get inside and put it up. We weren’t playing good defense and boxing out,” Almodobar said.
Reach Allison Goldsmith at sports@inkym.com |
