Honey Badgers Champs in Class of 2017

In the deepest grade level in the state, the Honey Badgers have emerged as the undisputed queens of the class of 2017.

With only seven players on the roster (all residing in North Attleboro), the Honey Badgers ripped through an extremely talented Division-1 pool to be crowned state champions. The HB7 all executed their roles flawlessly en route to the title.

“We have a group of girls who work their tails off, at practice and on their own,” said head coach Matt Forbes. “Our biggest assets are our ability to wear teams down and our trust in one another.  We don't know who will be coming up big from game to game, but only that it will happen.”

In the semi-final game, the Badgers took care of the Bay State Jaguars, 44-35. In the championship, the Honey Badgers defeated MT Elite, 61-42.

The Honey Badgers improved to 20-3 on the season (undefeated against other 9^th grade teams) and have beaten every notable team in the state including Bay State Magic Elite, Bay State Jaguars, Cape Cod Bulls and MT Elite.

“From my mental stability standpoint, it also helps that we have some of the best players in the state on our team assuring me prior to the Final Four, ‘we got this.’ And they did,” continued Forbes. “Sometimes as a coach, the best thing you can do is just get out of their way and not screw things up.”

The roster includes four North Attleboro Rocketeers (Emma Forbes, Julia Strachan, Sam Taggart and Caroline Collard), a pair of Bishop Feehan Shamrocks (Katie Nelson and Molly Lahiff) and one 8^th grader from the Foxboro Charter School (Riley Lahiff).

The team looks to continue its winning ways this weekend at the RI Breakers “Commotion by the Ocean” tournament in RI. The Badgers also plan on participating in the Dan Trant Classic (Long Island, NY), Gym Rat Challenge (Albany, NY), AAU National Championship and NEAAU College Showcase (Hanover, MA), USJN National Championship (Washington DC) and Blue Chip Invitational (Philadelphia, PA).

Mass Premier Swish capture D1 State Title

The Mass Premier Swish 8^th grade squad ran past the competition en route to a division-1 state title. MPC won every game in the tournament by double digits to keep their record against other 8^th grade teams unblemished on the season.

“The girls play like a true team,” said head coach Alex DaLuz. “They have each other’s back, are extremely unselfish and work harder than any group of players I’ve ever been around.”

In the semi-final game, MPC took care of Bay State Magic Elite (Larnard) 53-26. The Swish raced out to a 34-11 halftime lead and never looked back. Kaitlyn Guenet led all scorers with 13 points. Anna Shaughnessy added 9 points and 6 rebounds. Nicole Gallagher scored 9 points and had four steals and four assists. Ashley Sampson had 5 points, 4 steals and 3 assists.

In the championship, MPC locked horns with old rival Bay State Jaguars. The Jags jumped out to a 7-2 lead, but MPC remained composed and knotted the score up at 14. From that point, the Swish went on to score the next 12 points and raced out to a 33-16 halftime lead.

The Jaguars picked up their play in the second half, but the deficit was too steep for them to overcome and MPC Swish prevailed, 55-42.

Ashley Sampson had a monster game as she led the way with 18 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 steals.

Nicole Gallagher brought the toughness back to the Swish this season and she contributed with 12 points, 7 rebounds and 3 steals.

Tess Sussman did a little bit of everything as usual. She ended the game with 9 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists and 4 steals.

Anna Shaughnessy patrolled the paint on both ends and finished with 7 points and 6 rebounds.

Super subs Kiera Fernandes, Lily Sykes and Kaylin Reen all made key contributions off the bench. Fernandes led all players with 11 rebounds and also swiped 3 steals. Sykes was a defensive whiz kid and spark plug as the miniscule guard managed to tally 3 blocked shots, 2 steals and 2 assists. Reen stretched the floor with her unlimited shooting range and finished with 3 points and 2 steals.

For Kiera Fernandes, Ashley Sampson, Nicole Gallagher, Kaylin Reen, Lily Sykes and Ali Ready, this was their second MA state division-1 championship. The aforementioned six players, along with Coach Alex DaLuz, won the title as 6^th graders with the M-Plex Beasts.

MA D1 Final Four Courts/Times

Tonight guarantees to be a great night on the one-mile drive between Mass Premier Courts and M-Plex. Here are the times and courts for the girls Final 4.

5th Grade
6:00 Mass Premier Court 1 - Mass Mavericks vs. Angels
6:00 Mass Premier Court 2 - Mass Premier (Harney) vs. Mass Attack
8:20 Mass Premier Court 4 - Championship

6th Grade
6:00 Mass Premier Court 3 - KSC Thunder vs. Mass Attack
6:00 Mass Premier Court 4 - Bay State Jaguars vs. Gym Rats
8:20 Mass Premier Court 3 - Championship

7th Grade
6:00 M-Plex Court 1 - NE Crusaders vs. Mass Ducks
6:00 M-Plex Court 2 - MT Elite vs. Bay State Magic Elite
8:20 Mass Premier Court 2 - Championship

8th Grade
6:00 M-Plex Court 3 - Bay State Jaguars vs. Mass Huskies (DeSantis)
6:00 M-Plex Court 5 - Mass Premier Swish vs. Bay State Magic Elite (Larnard)
8:20 Mass Premier Court 1 - Championship

9th Grade
7:10 M-Plex Court 1 - Bay State Jaguars vs. Honey Badgers
7:10 M-Plex Court 5 - Cape Cod Bulls vs. MT Elite
9:20 Mass Premier Court 1 - Championship

10th Grade
7:10 Mass Premier Court 1 - Boston Showstoppers vs. MT Elite
7:10 Mass Premier Court 2 - CMAC vs. Rivals
9:20 Mass Premier Court 2 - Championship

11th Grade
7:10 Mass Premier Court 3 - Bay State Jaguars vs. Rivals White
7:10 Mass Premier Court 4 - RI Breakers vs. NC Blaze
9:20 Mass Premier Court 1 - Championship

Milford Hires Seaver to Guide Milford Boys

Paul Seaver is coming back home. Milford High athletic director Rich Piergustavo acted swiftly to fill its varsity boys vacancy, and tabbed Seaver to guide the program.

Seaver grew up in Milford and played his high school ball there. He is a 2007 graduate.

"Milford is the perfect fit for me. It's my dream job," said Seaver. "I grew up, played and graduated from Milford High, so the opportunity to come home and begin my varsity coaching career is simply incredible. I could not be any more excited."

Although young (Seaver turns 25 next week), Seaver certainly boasts a basketball heavy resume. He spent last season as Canton's JV boys basketball coach, is the co-founder of Hoop Crew LLC and is currently the head coach of one of the best 6th grade boys basketball teams in the state - Bay State Monarchs.

We at SH wish Seaver well. He volunteered his time and served as an 8th grade showcase coach this past March.

Milford plays in the very difficult Hockomock League.

MIAA Coaching Carousel

It's been a long time, we're back with the first 2014 edition of the Coaching Carosuel. 

A lot of jobs have opened up in the Select Hoops coverage area, and we have kept our ears open for just who may fill them. Here are some of the rumors that we've picked up over the last couple of months since basketball ended. 

- The Milford Boys Job is open after the resignation of former coach Jason Potty. Rumor has it that they may name a successor soon.

- Sources indicate that Phil "Smokey" Moresi will not return as the head girls basketball coach at Ashland High. Denise Beliveau has surfaced as the front runner. She is a Framingham native (Flyers job also vacant) that played collegiately at University of New Hampshire and has some experience playing overseas. 

- Dee King has stepped down as head coach at Framingham High after three seasons. She missed most of this season due to giving birth to her first child. We haven't heard of any successor to King, but if Beliveau has applied for Ashland, it wouldn't be surprising if she applied at her alma mater.

- Perhaps the biggest news from the girls side is the opening at North Attleboro High School. John Del Bonis is out after a 15-8 campaign in 2013-2014. The Red Rocketeers have one of the best young rosters in Massachusetts, and would be an outstanding gig not just for this year but for years to come. 

Sources indicate that the front runner for this job may be current assistant coach Dan Damish. Damish is the former state championship winning head coach of the Foxboro High School girls team. 

- Back to the boys side, Tim Clifford has resigned his post as the King Philip boys basketball coach. This job seems to be wide open, more on this as it develops.

To see the postings of these and other jobs, visit www.miaa.net

Bay State Magic 7th Advance to Final Four

BSME 7th grade cruised through the competition in the first weekend of the MA girls state tournament. Here are the results.

Pool Play - Game 1
Bay State Magic Elite 63
Sting Elite 32

Pool Play - Game 2
Bay State Magic Elite 65
Boston Showstoppers 44

Sweet 16
Bay State Magic Elite 49
CMAC 11

Elite 8
Bay State Magic Elite 56
Bay State Jaguars 18

MPC Swish Report / Submitted Travel Scores

The MPC Swish qualified for the final four of the MA 8th grade state tournament after going 4-0 this past weekend.

Pool Play - Game 1
MPC Swish 57
Bay State Jaguars 44

These two heavyweights were forced to square off in game one due to MPC Swish changing programs and landing the 15 seed. The Jags pounced on the Swish early 7-1, but the Swish ended the first half on a 34-9 run to take a 19-point lead into halftime.

A quick start in the second half by the Jaguars, led by Lexi Greffen and Janai Crooms, made things interesting, but the lead was a little too large for the Jags to overcome.

Point guard Ashley Sampson led the scoring charge with 15 points. Kiera Fernandes had 12 points off the bench to go along with six rebounds. Anna Shaughnessy and Nicole Gallagher chipped in with eight points apiece.

Pool Play - Game 2
MPC Swish 60
Cape Cod Waves 27

In a match-up of opening game winners, MPC Swish jumped out to a 26-0 lead and never looked back. Anna Shaughnessy and Kaylin Reen led a balanced scoring attack with 11 and 10 points, respectively.

Sweet 16
MPC Swish 62
Sting Elite 21

In the round of 16, the Swish came out focused and determined to advance. In a game in which every player scored, Nicole Gallagher set the pace with 11 points. Ashley Sampson and Anna Shaughnessy added 10 points apiece.

Elite 8
MPC Swish 52
RI Breakers 31

The MPC Swish jumped out to an 8-0 lead quickly and extended it to 33-13 at halftime and never looked back. Nicole Gallagher was relentless offensively and led the squad with 16 points. Kaitlyn Guenet had a solid game with 10 points and six rebounds.

The Swish qualified for the final four and will take on Bay State Magic (Larnard) on Friday, May 16th at M-Plex at 6:00.

7th Grade Girls
Pool Play - Game 1
New England Crusaders 54
Springfield Lady Ballers 36

Pool Play - Game 2
New England Crusaders 25
Mass Attack 10

Sweet 16
New England Crusaders 44
Team BSB 21

Elite 8
New England Crusaders 45
Boston Showstoppers 37

New England Crusaders advance to the final four and will play Mass Ducks.

Mass Boys State Tournament Results

The 4th, 6th, 7th and 9th grade MA boys state tournament took place over the weekend. Here are the results.

4th Grade D1

Champion - Boston Bobcats

4th Grade D2

Final Four:

A Step Ahead vs. Bay State Jaguars

Expressions vs. EVO - NE

5th Grade D1

Final Four:

Mass Elite Griffin vs. Boston Bobcats

Born Ready vs. Springfield Migs

5th Grade D2

Final Four:

PAL of NCM vs. GT Elite

Bay State Monarchs vs. Boston Warriors

7th Grade D1

Final Four:

Expressions vs. SS Wolfpack

Playaz Academy vs. Mass Commanders

7th Grade D2

Final Four:

Expressions vs. Mass Elite

BV Chaos vs. Middlesex Magic

9th Grade D1

Champion - BABC

9th Grade D2

Final Four:

NE Storm vs. South Shore Warriors

Mass Premier Courts (Reidy) vs. MPlex Mustangs

Girls MA State Tournament Final Four Match-ups

The final four in MA girls D1 basketball is set. Here are the match-ups, all taking place Friday night, May 16th.

5th Grade
Mass Premier (Harney) vs. Mass Attack
Mass Mavericks vs. Angels

6th Grade
Bay State Jaguars vs. Mass Gym Rats
KSC Thunder vs. Mass Attack

7th Grade
MT Elite vs. Bay State Magic Elite
New England Crusaders vs. Mass Ducks

8th Grade
Mass Premier Swish vs. Bay State Magic Elite (Larnard)
Bay State Jaguars vs. Mass Huskies (DeSantis)

9th Grade
MT Elite vs. Cape Cod Bulls
Bay State Jaguars vs. Honey Badgers

10th Grade
Boston Showstoppers vs. MT Elite
CMAC vs. Rivals

11th Grade
RI Breakers vs. NC Blaze
Bay State Jaguars vs. Rivals White