RallyNorth.net

Newburyport wins with buzzer beat on opening night of tournament play

Tuesday, February, 26 By Dan Guttenplan
Sports editor

The Newburyport boys basketball team seems to be well aware that state tournament season has arrived.

Newburyport scored what may prove to be the most exciting victory of the winter season on Evening No. 1 of EMass. State Tournament play. Clippers center Chris Barry converted on a uncontested layup as time expired to give his team a 58-56 victory.

No. 6 Newburyport seemed destined for overtime after No. 11 Lynn Tech's sharpshooter Victor Smith buried a game-tying 3-pointer from 25 feet with 2.3 seconds remaining.

Needing to advance the entire court to set up a final shot attempt, Clippers coach Tom L'Italien called timeout and instructed senior guard Ben Brink to throw a full-court pass to Joe Clancy, who was positioned in the Lynn Tech lane.

Brink's overhand baseball-style pass was on target, but Clancy, who had a defender draped on his hip, deflected the pass closer to the hoop where Barry stood alone. The 6-4 senior gathered the pass and banked home a right-handed layup.

Newburyport's packed student section | located behind the basket at the opposite end of the floor | erupted as time expired. No less than 30 students charged the floor and celebrated around halfcourt.

The Newburyport players and coaches formed a jumping huddle along the baseline where Barry attempted the final shot. The huddle collapsed onto the floor, causing a massive pile of white jerseys.

"That's the best moment of the season," Barry said. "You could play four years and never have a moment like that. The design of the play was to get the ball to Clancy. If it's not a clean pass, he's supposed to deflect it to me. It was perfect."

Newburyport (14-7) returned to the EMass. Tournament after a one-year hiatus last season. That Clippers squad (9-11) missed the tournament for the first time since the program won a state title in 2000.

"Newburyport basketball has come a long way in the last year," Clancy said. "Last year we missed the tournament, so we were excited to get back on the floor tonight. To have a moment like this, it's an awesome feeling."

The fact that the game came down to a buzzer beater was a surprise considering Newburyport led 52-48 with 48 seconds remaining. Even after Lynn Tech (11-10) overcame that deficit to tie the score at 53-53 with 22.8 second remaining, Clancy appeared to put the game away when he buried a 3-pointer to put Newburyport up 56-53 with 7.0 seconds remaining.

Off a timeout, Lynn Tech responded with a designed play for Smith, who had a game-high 23 points. His prayer from well beyond NBA 3-point range forced L'Italien to call for Brink's full-court pass.

"We run that play 20 times a week in practice," Brink said. "We literally go over it every day. I was going for Clancy, but the tip to Barry is always an option. I've made the throw so many times, I knew I'd get it there."

Clancy led all Newburyport scorers with 20 points including seven in the final 2:45. Barry added 15 points and nine rebounds.

The Clippers' largest lead of the game came in the first quarter when they raced to a 16-6 advantage. Lynn Tech owned the second quarter in taking a 28-22 edge into the break. After Lynn Tech's lead stretched to 38-28 midway through the third quarter, the Clippers received a spark from reserves Nick Welch and Patrick Reynolds as Barry watched from the bench. The Clippers closed the deficit to 40-37 after three quarters, making every possession in the fourth quarter count.

"I could see from the pace of the game that our guys would need some rest," L'Italien said. "Chris was playing well, but he needed a break mentally more than anything else. The other guys stepped up, and Chris found a way for us down the stretch."