John DiBiaso Scores 500th Career Win on Hardwood as Everett Tops Chelmsford

By Matt Feld (@Mattyfeld612)

Everett, Mass. – John DiBiaso has accomplished nearly every milestone imaginable on the football field, but on Thursday night he added one to his hardwood resume. 

Ghared Boyce scored 30 points to lead No. 1 Everett past No. 17 Chelmsford, 66-46, to give DiBiaso his 500^th career win as the Crimson Tide’s basketball head coach.

DiBiaso is the only coach in Massachusetts’ history to win 300 football games and 500 in another. He has 252 wins as the Crimson Tide’s football coach to go with 11 Super Bowl titles.

“It means I’m very, very old,” said DiBiaso jokingly of the accomplishment.

One of the most storied figures in Massachusetts high school sports lore, DiBiaso will depart Everett at the end of the school year to become the head football coach at Catholic Memorial.

Still, DiBiaso knows Everett to be the place where his family grew up.

“My kids grew up here. My wife and I met in the old Everett gym,” said DiBiaso. “There are a lot of good memories. I try to dwell on the good things.”

On the court after holding a narrow 27-26 lead at the half, the Crimson Tide left little doubt over the final 16 minutes as to the identity of the better team.

Boyce scored four straight and Isaiah Likely finished through contact to put Everett up four.

Everett then turned to its full court pressure to speed the game up and wear the Lions down.

Off the bench, Jake Willcox provided a spark as off a Boyce steal, he completed a three-point play to put Evertt up seven.

Down low, meanwhile, Eric Thompson was a presence all evening long for the Crimson Tide finishing with 10 points, nine rebounds, and five blocks.

Thompson scored back-to-back baskets in the low post and Boyce followed up by scoring seven straight to give Everett a 17-point lead early in the fourth.

In the first half it looked as though Chelmsford’s Chris McCarthy would turn out to be the star of the evening.

McCarthy scored all of the Lions’ 15 first quarter points to single handily pace Chelmsford to a 15-11 advantage after one.

Chelmsford’s first half lead stretched to as many as seven when McCarthy corralled a loose ball and fired a circus pass over to Suubi Nkugwa for a corner trey to put the Lions on top 22-15.

Everett hit its stride before the end of the half.

                

Likely proved vital to the Crimson Tide’s offense as he bullied his way into the paint for two and then made an interior pass over to Thompson for a basket to pull the Tide within three.

With less than a minute to play in the frame, Marcus Alexis capped off the 12-4 Crimson Tide run to close the half as he drilled a transition three pointer to give Everett a 27-26 lead going into the locker room.