By Matt Feld (@mattyfeld612)
Arlington, Mass. - Dominic Black made sure that Arlington left little doubt.
Led by Black’s 12 points and 16 rebounds, the Spy Ponders
defeated Belmont, 60-51, on Friday night in a Middlesex Liberty Division clash at
Arlington High School.
Black racked up eight rebounds in each half, including four
offensive. The sophomore then turned those four offensive rebounds into six
second chance points.
“Dominic Black is probably the best player in the state
nobody is talking about,” said Arlington head coach John Bowler. “He does it
all. He guards the other team’s best player, he can rebound, and he can score.
Just an incredible player.”
The highly anticipated showdown looked to be a tossup at the
half, with the two sides playing to a 28-28 tie.
Four minutes into the third quarter, the Spy Ponders (8-1, 7-0) had
taken complete control going on a 18-2 run to create separation.
James Gascoigne (15 points, 9 rebounds) got the spurt started
for the Spy Ponders with consecutive layups, and Black followed up by
corralling a pair of offensive rebounds and putting them back in to give
Arlington a 36-30 lead.
Defensively the Spy Ponders turned to their full court
pressure and doubled Marauders’ star guard Danny Yardemian off the ball.
Denying Yardemian paid dividends as Arlington used its length
and athleticism to deflect passes and get out in transition.
Once out on the break Arlington proved nearly impossible to
stop as Gascoigne scored four straight points in transition to increase
Arlington’s lead up to 10.
Sophomore star Bensley Joseph then put an exclamation point
on the offensive avalanche as he scored six straight points to give the Spy
Ponders a comfortable 46-30 lead.
“We wanted to play at a much quicker tempo,” said Bowler. “When
we play up-tempo we are pretty successful at it. We wanted to pressure them and
make it difficult for them to bring the ball up the court. It got them uncomfortable
and forced them into a pace they are not usually playing in.”
The Marauders settled down following a timeout and slowly
clawed their way back into the game.
A floater by Yardemian pulled Belmont within 10 early in the
fourth quarter but Arlington answered.
Gascoigne finished down low before Nicholas Karalis beat
Belmont down the floor for two to put the Spy Ponders back up 52-38 midway
through the fourth.
Belmont made one final push as a Mac Annus triple and a Will
Ellet three-point play highlighted an 11-3 run that pulled the Marauders within
55-49 with less than two minutes left.
Black, however, picked up two huge offensive rebounds before
Joseph sealed it at the free throw line to keep Arlington perfect in league
play.
“It’s great to be 7-0 in the league,” said Bowler. “Winning
the league title is one of our main goals. We have a makeup game versus Woburn
on Sunday so that’s another great test for us.”
The Marauders jumped out ahead early as five points from
Yardemian gave Belmont a 15-12 lead after one.
An Ellet basket increased Belmont’s advantage up to four
midway through the second quarter, but Arlington showed signs of turning the
tide before the end of the half.
Karalis and Joey Pazzia drove to the basket for layups, and
Joseph scored four points in the frame’s closing seconds to even the score at 28
at the intermission.
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