Attleboro Boys' Basketball Knocks Off North Attleboro

The Attleboro High Bombardiers might not have a lot of size, they might play in an unsually frenetic style, and it certainly is not pretty, but in the end it was enough for a 57-41 victory over North Attleboro Wednesday night.

The Rocketeers were as close as 45-40 with only a few moments remaining but a hectic final two minutes and a 12-1 closing run by Attleboro earned the win.

Senior guard JJ Jolaoso struggled for the first three quarters, but exploded for eight points in the fourth (11 overall) as the Bombardiers forced turnover after turnover and took advantage for easy points.

Stephen Edmonds caused havoc for the Rocketeers with his full court pressure including an acrobatic layup after a steal. North Attleboro struggled to get the ball over half.

Attleboro head coach Mark Houle knows that the controlled anarchy of the final few minutes is the style that gives the Bombardiers the best opportunity to win.

"To North's credit they slowed us down, but you can't get into that kind of tempo unless you're scoring and we didn't really score well in the first half," Houle said.

The Bombardiers used almost everybody on their roster, including a player off the JV that was not listed. It was this energy boost that allowed the Bombardiers to play full-court right until the final whistle.

"We had some guys that came off the bench and gave us some key minutes for us and a little energy boost," said Houle. "Sometimes that's what you need is guys stepping up and we had a couple guys do that tonight."

Attleboro were led by Jolaoso, sophomore Tim Walsh, and Edmonds each with 11 points. Raymond Ivey (eight) and Zach Morrison (six) gave the Bombardiers a little bit of inside presence especially on the boards where, after a slow start, they held their own against the bigger Rocketeers.

The win means that Attleboro will have the chance to win the tournament trophy for the first time since 2009. The Bombardiers will face their crosstown rivals, the Shamrocks, who beat Taunton, 55-50, in the early game. They will face off Friday at 7:30 p.m. with both teams looking for their sixth tournament title.