After a six-game slump, GHS Basketball bounces back with a dominant 60-48 victory against the Saugus Sachems. Team basketball, clutch offense, and defensive dominance led to Gloucester’s success. 

“Last couple games we came out flat and got in a hole early,” senior captain Jack Patten said. “Tonight we pressed and came out strong. We got up early and never looked back,” Patten said.  “Feels good to be back in the win column.”

“Big win for us,” assistant coach Tyler Conigliari said. “Hopefully we can use the momentum to turn the corner on our season. Basketball is all about who is playing the best come [the] end of the season and tournament time.”

Although Saugus won the tipoff, Gloucester’s junior Nate Montagnino scored the game’s first points. The Fishermen’s press defense led to some effortless steals. Senior Zach Oliver made some great plays with assists and hitting contested shots. Montagnino and Oliver also made defensive plays with blocks. On offense, GHS balanced aggression in the paint with poise from the perimeter. The first quarter ended with GHS up 20-11.

The second quarter remained much the same for the Fishermen. Gloucester kept the defensive pressure and made it hard for the Sachems to shoot the ball. The highlight play of the second quarter was when Patten stole the ball from Saugus which led to an assist to Montagnino. GHS’ physicality in the second led them to get some otherwise hard rebounds. Montagnino led Gloucester at the end of the first half with 9 points. The Fishermen finished the second quarter up 31-17.

Gloucester struggled offensively for most of the third. Patten, with two floaters, had most of GHS’ points. The Fishermen still stood strong on defense which forced Saugus to take tough shots. Senior Byron Thomas and junior Adam Borowick added to Patten’s points with threes of their own in the third. The quarter concluded with Gloucester up 41-29.

Thomas kicked off the fourth quarter with a three of his own. Gloucester’s next offensive play led to a Borowick three from Thomas. The Fishermen offense seemed to be back on track. The game started to get close which caused Gloucester head coach Adam Philpott to call for a timeout with the Fishermen up 48-43. After the timeout, GHS’ offense rolled and received multiple calls to the line by the referees. The game ended in a foul battle which led to a Gloucester win. Gloucester finished the game up 60-48.

“Last night was a great win for us against a tough Saugus team,” Head Coach Adam Philpott said. “I was very proud of the guys, going through a tough stretch of losses can really wear on a team from a mental perspective but they stuck with it and came to practice everyday working to get better. I was particularly proud of our effort on the defensive end and we got a lot of contributions from different guys on the defensive end,” Philpott said. “We are going to use this game to hopefully build some momentum and string together a number of wins down the stretch to position ourselves for a state tournament berth. We are a tournament caliber team and I think we did a good job proving that last night.“

Gloucester moves on to 5-9 on the year. Their next opponent will be the Salem Witches at home, this Friday. This game is their senior night, in which they will hold a ceremony celebrating the seniors. The tipoff for this match up is at 7 PM.