By Jake Epstein
Sports Reporter
Following a tough road loss to Needham two weeks ago to close out the regular season, the boys’ basketball team’s ambitions of making a deep tournament run ultimately came up short as they lost to Braintree, 46-42, in the opening round of the D1 sectional tournament.
Senior captain Alex Kiritsy led the scoring with 14 points, including four made three-point shots, while junior Oskar Coulter came up just short of Kiritsy, nailing two three-point field goals to finish the night with 12 points.
“Our offense sometimes got stagnant,” Kiritsy said. “We also didn’t get out in transition as much and that was a really big part of our offense.”
After a slow first quarter that saw the score reside at 8-7 in favor of the Lions, a rowdy fan section trying to give the team the home-court advantage feel had plenty of motivation to cheer going into the third to try and bring their team to victory, as Braintree boasted a 23-20 lead at half.
As was the case in the Needham game, missed free-throws came back to haunt the Lions at the end, as they shot less than 30 percent from the line, making just four out of 15.
Fouling hurt the Lions, as 22 total fouls on the night sent Braintree to the line more than anticipated.
Displaying dominant performances at home all season long, the energy was electric from the boys throughout the entire game, pressing high during Braintree possessions, forcing six steals and two blocked shots.
The Lions headed into the fourth quarter trailing 34-30, but never were able to firmly grasp hold of the lead as time expired down the stretch and the season ultimately came to a close.
Despite the loss, however, it was still a memorable season for the boys that saw them maintain their image as a DCL powerhouse and establish themselves as a top team in the state.
“Beating [Newton] North during the Christmas tournament was a very memorable and awesome experience,” Kiritsy said. “Not to mention beating Andover at the TD Garden.”
The boys finish their season with a 15-8 record and will look to build off of a successful season that saw them earn their first home playoff game in recent memory.
