Buresh triple buries Lawrence
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LAWRENCE - Alec Buresh took one shot last night.
Sniper!
With Central holding on 50-49 and Lawrence charging in the final minute last night, the sophomore sucked the final breaths out of the Lancers with a 3-point corner clincher in what went on to be a 59-51 Raider victory.
"We wanted a pick and roll up high with me and Nick (Cambio)," said Raider high scorer Tyler Nelson, who paced all on the night with 30 points. "I saw Lawrence was coming to play that, and they left Alex all alone in the corner. When a shooter is open like that he has to make those shots. Alec did a great job."
Buresh, in the game mostly due to the fact that starting two-guard A.J. Pettway had fouled out, understood the heat with the game hanging there in the balance.
The sweet-shooting guard just stepped in and let it fly.
"You just try and block it all out," said Buresh. "The crowd, the emotions, everything. I knew the (shot) clock was down, so I just blocked everything and shot it. It was big because they were all over Ty."
Lawrence just couldn't recover and now falls to 5-6 on the year.
"It's never easy in here," said Nelson. "Lawrence doesn't fear us. They always play us tough, especially here. They don't back down and they make you earn it."
Central, with the win, holds on to its one-game lead over Andover in the MVC large race. The 9-4 Raiders built a 27-22 halftime lead and saw that number rise to 11 in the third quarter when Nelson swished a pair of free throws for a technical foul assigned to Lancer coach Raymond Nunez.
But the gritty Lancers kept chipping away.
Senior Luis Torres, who led all Lancers with 20 points, relentlessly attacked the hoop with positive results. When a late Nelson triple provided some breathing room, Torres answered with a driving layin and another scoring scoop of a sweet dish from Dantae Neal. Two more free throws for Torres made things interesting at 50-49 into the final minute.
But that's when Buresh stepped up and finished the deal with his three. At 53-49 with 30-plus seconds to play, Central would not allow any late heroics.
The Raiders take to the road again on Tuesday at Methuen, while Lawrence continues its fight for a spot in the Division 1 North tourney with a road trip to North Andover.
Game Statistics:
Central Catholic (59): A.J. Pettway 4-0-11, Tyler Nelson 8-11-30, Alec Buresh 1-0-3, Anthony Crespo 1-0-2, John Homsey 1-0-2, Alex Santos 2-0-4, Nick Cambio 1-5-7, Kevin Fernandez 0-0-0. Totals 18-16-59
Lawrence (51): Luis Torres 5-9-20, Kevin Fabian 2-2-7, Bryan Morales 0-0-0, Paulino 1-3-5, Dantae Neal 2-4-8, Carlos Acevedo 1-0-2, Julio Vicente 1-0-2, Franziel Reyes 2-1-5, Andy Henriquez 1-0-2. Totals 15-19-51
3-pointers: L — Torres, Fabian; CC — Nelson 2, Pettway 3, Buresh
