LCHS vs METHUEN Playoff 2007

The Division 1 MIAA Playoffs have begun. The Classical Boys Basketball Team was looking for a tough game against Methuen, which is a powerhouse and consistent Division Champion up by the New Hampshire border. But due to illness and other problems, the Classical Varsity needed to call up two more freshmen, Chris Francois and Tony Wondee. That's four freshmen, with Jarell Byrd and Jasper Grassa already playing big time ball with the Varsity.

The game started fast. Coach Grassa called for a full court press the whole first half. Methuen does have players who can hit the three-pointers, so this strategy forced Methuen into turnovers they couldn't afford. Classical speed and focus showed in the score by the end of a quick first half.

Classical cut back on the full court coverage in the second half but still relied on their speed for both offense and defense. Although Methuen tried to keep the score close, Classical stayed hot and won the game by an 82-67 score.

Kudos go to Roberto Vellon with 12 points in the first half, and 11 in the second half. Vince Spence did most of his scoring in the first half and ended up with 18 points. Quivari Jackson dropped in 14, Jorel Berberena scored all of his 9 points in the second half, Cameron Smith and Jarell Byrd both had 8, and Jamesly Joseph put in 2.

Next Stop in the Championship series - - - Classical travels to Boston Latin tomorrow.

LYNN -- Lynn Classical's one-two punch is starting to resemble a left-right combination by Muhammad Ali.
Last night, in the preliminary round of the Division 1 North boys basketball tournament, Roberto Vellon had 23 points and Vince Spence 18 as the Rams shook off Methuen, 82-67, to advance to the first round.
Classical, 15-6, will travel to sixth-seeded Boston Latin Wednesday (7:30).
While Spence ruled the first half, scoring 15 of his 18 points, Vellon took a more even approach, scoring 12 and 11 points in each respective half.
"It was a good game," said coach Tom Grassa. "We got contributions from everyone."
Similar to the game two weeks ago against Lynn English, Spence set the tone for the Rams early in the game. After Classical fell behind, 6-1, Spence heated up, scoring five straight points to tie the score as Classical zipped past the Rangers to take a 13-6 lead.
For a while, it looked as if the cliché about basketball being a game of runs would hold true, as Methuen jumped back with five straight points to make it 13-11.
It was like that for most of the first half, with Classical running away and Methuen catching up -- but never going ahead. The Rams had the last run of the half, and went into the locker room up by 14 (46-32).
Even though Vellon and Spence shared top billing, they were far from the only two players chipping in for Classical. And it was a good thing, too, because Classical was minus two of its guards -- Jasper Grassa (illness) and Michael Quintana (team rule). This meant the Rams needed monster games from Jorel Berberena and Quivari Jackson -- and both came through.
Jackson was a force throughout, scoring 14 points, while Berberena had a run in the second half, scoring all nine of his points -- none more crucial than a conventional three-pointer that got the lead back up to 10 (66-56) after it began to appear as if Methuen was creeping back into the game.
"We had a stretch," Grassa said, "where we didn't play much defense. It was a small stretch where we just kept matching baskets."
That's when Berberena got hot, and that was the end of any hope Methuen had of coming back.
Also contributing for Classical were freshman center Jarell Byrd (8 points, and a strong presence in the paint) and sophomore Cameron Smith (8 points, with some clutch long-range shooting).
"Everybody came up big tonight," said Spence. "Not just me.
"Right now," he said, "we're playing with a lot of confidence."
Spence points to a Classical loss two weeks ago, in its own gym, to Salem as a turning point.
"We knew we had to wake up after that," he said. "The game after that was against English. We needed more energy. We were lazy in that (Salem) game. And we didn't realize the importance of the game."
Spence feels the Rams have the chops to make some serious noise in the tournament, "But only if we keep working and pushing ourselves," he said. "Everybody has to step it up now."