RallyNorth.net

Fri, Feb 02, 2018 07:00 PM @ Lowell

Team	1	2	3	4	Final
Central Catholic	12	13	16	17	58
Lowell	22	18	14	18	72

Lowell sweeps Central

Friday, February, 02 By Jeff Hamrick
Correspondent

LOWELL — While the score was the same as the first time around, Lowell’s second 72-58 victory over Central Catholic came much easier than it did in early January.

It also provided the Red Raiders sole possession of first place in the Merrimack Valley Conference Large Division.

Alex Rivera, the reigning conference player of the year, did the bulk of the damage, scoring 22 of his game-high 30 in the opening half en route to a 40-25 advantage for the home team. Rivera finished with five three-pointers, including a couple from deeper than 20 feet, and was 8 of 15 from the floor.

“The thing is, we play hard every game,” said Rivera, who is committed to play next year for UMass-Lowell. “It’s all about making shots. If we make our shots, we’re the best team in the state. We’re not going to lose if we make our shots. Our starting five are all shooters, so we’re hard to defend.”

Lowell (10-1 conference, 13-1 overall) wasted little time, needing fewer than five minutes to open a double-digit lead. Rivera finished the first quarter with 11 points on 4-of-7 shooting before adding another 11, including five on free throws, in the second frame.

“He’s a great player, and he’s going to get his,” first-year Central coach John Walsh said. “You try to limit his touches because you know once he gets the ball he’s going to score. I don’t know how much we limited him in the second half. I think he probably just decided to facilitate more. He’s a Division 1 player for a reason.”

While Rivera was lighting it up at his end, his Mass Rival AAU teammate Colin Bradanese was struggling just to find open space. The Raider center entered the game averaging a team-high 19.5 points, but didn’t get off his first shot until 4:57 was left in the second quarter.

“We have to do a better job of getting him the ball,” Walsh said of Bradanese, who did recover and finished with 22 points.

Lowell opened its biggest lead early in the third quarter when three-pointers by Rivera and Carlos Nunez provided a 46-29 advantage.

Central (9-2, 12-4) closed its deficit to 10 midway through the fourth when a Kevin Constant layup made the score 61-51 but couldn’t finish the rally.

“(Lowell) played really hard and made shots,” Walsh said. “We didn’t rebound as well as we should have, and that’s about it.”

Dom Keegan was the only other Raider in double figures, scoring all 12 points from behind the arc.

Lowell’s only loss was to Lawrence, which remained a half-game behind the Red Raiders with a win over Haverhill and will try to replicate its 89-65 victory from three weeks ago when the two square off in Lowell on Feb. 16.

“Any win against Central is a good win,” Lowell coach Bob Michalczyk said. “That’s what it comes down to. We still have Lawrence and Arlington, BC High and Needham ... so looking for a No. 1 seed is a little hard to predict right now.”

 

Lowell 72, Central Catholic 58

CENTRAL CATHOLIC (58): Kevin Constant 3 1-2 7, Bret Edwards 2 1-2 5, Dom Keegan 4 0-0 12, Colin Bradanese 8 5-13 22, George Smith 4 0-0 9, Cam Homsey 0 0-0 0, Manny Sanchez 1 0-0 3, Jose Lara 0 0-0 0, Matt Downer 0 0-0 0. Totals 22 7-17 58

LOWELL (72): Carlos Nunez 4 2-3 12, Nate Siow 0 4-4 4, Justin Villanueva 4 0-5 8, Alex Rivera 8 9-13 30, Ty Chan 5 0-0 12, Deven Okowuga 2 0-0 4, Daiquan Durham 1 0-0 2, Jaceb McKenzie 0 0-0 0. Totals 24 15-25 72

3-pointers: CENTRAL — Keegan 4, Bradanese, Smith, Sanchez; LOWELL — Rivera 5, Nunez 2, Chan 2

Central Catholic (9-2, 12-4):     12 13 16 17 — 58

Lowell (10-1, 13-1):     22 18 14 18 — 72