Boys’ hoop team falls to Sharon in opener

Senior captain Joe McCabe is among the league's top shooters. (Mike Barucci photo)

Those who remember the end of last season for the CHS boys’ basketball team will recall the best two games of the year in the playoffs: a 58-46 win over Dover-Sherborn in the first round and a 57-53 road loss to Cardinal Spellman in the second round. Spellman went on to lose in the Division 3 south semifinal.

Even though the regular record said 6-16, the final two games represented the Bulldogs at their best — an impressive combination of clutch shooting, tough defense, hustle, aggressiveness and a refuse-to-lose mentality.

Five key players from last year’s team return this season: Chris Murray, Scott Levy, Colby Gavigan, Joe McCabe and Anthony Bires. All are exceptional athletes, good shooters, and rebound well for their height.

New head coach Ryan Gordy said the team is quick and agile, but the questions now are depth, height, and rebounding.

“We will use our quickness to our advantage and spread out the defense,” he said.

The Bulldogs unfortunately opened up their 2011-2012 season last Friday with a 48-36 loss to Sharon. Canton led 22-21 at halftime but did not play well in the third quarter, trailing 36-27 heading into the fourth.

Gordy said defense and rebounding were not the issues in the loss. Instead, he pointed to a lack of execution on offense as well as costly turnovers. The Bulldogs were also missing two key bench players, Jaden Mason and Andrew Mansfield. Both players are day to day with injuries.

McCabe and Sam Larson led the offense with 12 points each.

Gordy said he’s had a good first few weeks of practice and has seen great leadership from his captains: Murray, Levy, Gavigan and McCabe. He is particularly impressed with McCabe, who dedicated his offseason to playing basketball.

“As far as I can see, he’s had an unbelievable offseason, someone who is very committed to playing basketball,” Gordy said.

Other varsity team members are: forwards Tavon Jacobs and Tyrone Sutton, and guards Demitrius Jean, Tristen Mullen, and Eric Wong.

Gordy comes to Canton after serving as the freshman basketball coach at Franklin for four years. Prior to that, he served as freshman coach at Mansfield and Silver Lake in Pembroke. He is currently a physical education teacher at Blackstone-Millville Regional High School.

“We have a young staff, which is excited and energetic,” Gordy said. “Our goal is to restore pride in Canton basketball, all the way down to the youth program as we hope to make a well-coordinated program.”

Canton was due to play its first home game on Tuesday against Foxboro, followed by an away game Friday, December 30, at 5 p.m. at Blue Hills. Besides the league schedule, the 20-game season includes non-league games against Blue Hills, Southeastern, and Fairhaven.

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Posted by Mike Berger on Dec 21 2011. Filed under High School, Sports. Both comments and pings are currently closed.