NEWPORT – The Sunapee Lakers boys basketball team entered Wheeler Gym hoping to beat up on the winless Newport Tigers. Instead, they were met with a dog fight, barely holding on for a 62-58 win.
Newport started off hot, winning the opening tip and scoring. They would stand toe-to-toe with the Lakers, trailing only 10-8 after a Sunapee timeout with 4:28 left in the first. The Tigers were able to drive the lane early for easy layups.
After the timeout, the Lakers began to play tougher defense and make their open shots, getting nine points from junior Zach Belisle, all off three pointers.
The new defensive intensity proved tough for the Tigers as they missed multiple close shots, leading to them falling behind 24-14 at the end of the first. “We need to work harder in practice at game speed,” said Tigers head coach William Page. “They got amped up and rushed some shots.”
The second quarter was more of the same, with both teams trading shots to start the quarter, but the Lakers started to pull away towards the final minutes of the half. The visitors would take a 39-28 lead into halftime.
“I think we did a good job in the first half of building a cushion,” said Sunapee head coach Tim Puchtler.
Sunapee would continue to hold Newport at an arm’s length for a majority of the third quarter, never letting the Tigers within 10. However, a late-quarter run by Newport, led by a huge and-one layup from JT Blaine, would drop the deficit to 46-39 heading into the night’s final quarter. Blaine led all Tigers with 16 points.
To start the fourth, Newport almost immediately entered the bonus, guaranteeing free throws on all fouls from there on out.
However, they could not take advantage of this for much of the period. The Tigers missed frequently from the line. “It was a mix of the pressure and needing to practice it more,” said Page. “We have not had much time to practice it as we had to put in a full program.”
With four minutes to go, two of Newport’s starters fouled out, and Sunapee entered the bonus. The score sat at 58-49 when Sunapee called a timeout with 3:24 remaining.
But, Newport began to claw into the lead. The Tigers forced multiple turnovers with their full court press, culminating in a steal by junior Cody O’Brian who blew by two Lakers before dumping off to a teammate for the score, sending the gym into a frenzy.
“We did not play well tonight,” said Puchtler postgame. “We let them get into us. I told them it was going to be a loud gym, and that Newport’s gonna come after us.”
With two minutes remaining, Sunapee junior Jordan Chappell would foul out, leaving with a game-high 22 points. He went 10 for 11 from the free throw line on the night.
The Tigers struggles from the free throw line began to bite them down the stretch, as many easy point opportunities were missed. Their deficiency on the offensive boards would also show, allowing Sunapee second and third chances off their own misses.
With 9.4 seconds remaining, Newport called a timeout. A Sunapee missed free throw made the clock run, and a Blaine missed shot would end the game, 62-58 Sunapee. “We grinded it out, and did just enough to hold on,” said Puchtler.
The win sends Sunapee into the new year 4-0, as they get ready for a contest January 4th against Hindsdale. For Newport, they will continue searching for their first win Friday against Windsor.
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