CHS boys hoop rolls into new year with two big wins

Senior captain Devin Foster is making a strong early case for Hockomock MVP consideration. (Mike Barucci photo)

Update: The CHS boys varsity basketball team improved to 4-0 in 2019 with a 54-39 road win over Sharon on Friday night. The red-hot Bulldogs also defeated King Philip this week and currently lead the Davenport Division at 6-1 overall.

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CHS head boys basketball coach Ryan Gordy has heard the whispers in basketball circles that when it comes to this year’s Bulldog squad, it’s senior all-star Devin Foster and then “everybody else.”

But in last week’s game against Stoughton, the rival Knights learned the hard way about some of Canton’s other offensive weapons as sophomore forwards Eric Mischler and Matt Giglio combined for 10 three pointers to lead the Bulldogs to a 58-48 victory in the Masciarelli gym.

Mischler, in his first career start, scored all 13 of Canton’s points in the first quarter and finished with a game-high 22 while Giglio connected on four threes for a career-high 12 points.

“They grew up tonight,” Gordy said of the two sophomores after the win. “The fact that the two of them were not scared of the moment in a game in which some of our normal starters didn’t hit our expectations [was significant]. The two of them carried us.”

The emergence of Mischler and Giglio came at an opportune time as Canton was without starter Robbie Gallery, who is recovering from an ankle injury.

As for Foster, he was held in check in the first half as the Knights made him the focus of their defensive game plan — employing a “box and one” defense that is specifically designed to stop teams with one dominant scoring threat. But the star guard still managed to contribute and finished the game with a double-double (14 points, 10 rebounds).

“Devin draws so much attention, he is so well known, he creates opportunities for others and in Eric and Matt’s case they took advantage of it,” said Gordy.

The game was a low-scoring battle for much of the contest with the Bulldogs leading 13-12 after one quarter, the two teams tied at 25 at the half, and Canton clinging to a one-point edge entering the fourth quarter (37-36).

The game turned in Canton’s favor after Giglio and Mischler hit on three consecutive three-point shots to push the lead to 10 with 6:32 remaining in the game. Stoughton battled back to get it to within three, but a combination of another Mischler three pointer, drives by Paul Corcoran and Foster, and free throws by Ryan Lentol helped seal the win for the Bulldogs.

Stoughton head coach John Gallivan said his team (5-3) played well, did its job in containing Foster, and held Canton to 37 points after three quarters. He felt the game turned in Canton’s favor as a result of Mischler’s and Giglio’s three-point shooting.

“It was a rockfight and we ran out of rocks,” Gallivan said. “We had some good looks; a lot of shots went in and out. We stopped doubling Foster in the second half. You pick your poison, Sometimes it works and other times it doesn’t. Mischler’s three-point shooting, especially in the first quarter, was amazing. He stepped up huge.”

Lentol scored eight points in the win and Corcoran added four with several key rebounds late in the game. Friday’s game was the first for Canton in 17 days since its big upset win over Franklin on December 18.

Two days after beating the Black Knights, the Bulldogs continued their winning ways with a 65-57 home victory over nonleague Milton (5-2), improving to 4-1 overall behind a dominant two-way performance from Foster, who finished with 33 points and 12 rebounds. Mischler chipped in with 10 points while Lentol, Corcoran and Kyle Fitzgerald combined for 19 points.

While Milton proved to be a tall, athletic, and quick team, the Bulldogs had the edge in rebounding and defense and never trailed in the game, leading 21-16 after one quarter, 39-29 at the half, and 51-42 after three quarters.

“No doubt Devin’s a great player, but their supporting cast around him are tough players who play hard, defend hard, and can shoot,” said Milton head coach Billy Donovan. “[Gordy] is a great coach and you can see his players are well prepared and spend a lot of time in preparation … Today this was a good matchup of two good basketball teams, and who knows, we may see them again in the playoffs.”

For Gordy, the next challenge is a stretch of three straight away games that began earlier this week at King Philip. Over the past few seasons the Bulldogs have been virtually unbeatable at home (23-3) but have a road record that hovers around the .500 mark. The team will next head to Sharon and Bishop Feehan on Friday and Saturday before returning home for a Tuesday night game against a very tough Mansfield squad.

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Posted by Mike Berger on Jan 11 2019. Filed under High School, Sports. Both comments and pings are currently closed.