March Madness: Red Raider Boys Face Catholic Memorial Tonight

Tonight, the men will be separated, as they say, from the boys.

While both the Barnstable High School and Catholic Memorial boys basketball teams boast equal 16-4 records, the differences between the two teams may seem like night and day.

Barnstable repeated as Old Colony League champions this season, a feat it has not accomplished since 1981 when then head coach Dick Segura led the Red & White to back-to-back Southeastern Massachusetts Conference (SMC) championships.

But the Red Raiders have not won a postseason boys varsity basketball game since February 28, 1995 when Barnstable defeated Dennis-Yarmouth in a Division 1 South Sectional Preliminary Round game that boasted 36 combined points from brothers (and BHS Athletic Hall of Famers) Mickey and Shaun Fein.

Catholic Memorial, on the other hand, has experienced five consecutive decades as a perennial Division 1 powerhouse, culminating in an arguably next-to-impossible Division 1 State Championship in 2008. 

And while Barnstable has enjoyed a 7-1 road record this season, tonight's hosts in West Roxbury have squared off against some of the state's best and highest-ranked teams as part of its regular season schedule. Teams like Brockton, Xaverian, St. John's Prep, BC High and Franklin, to name a few.

Barnstable has averaged just over 62 points per game this season, an increase over the previous season, contrasted with Catholic Memorial averaging 79.17 points per game.

Catholic Memorial school officials say they expect a big crowd tonight when the Red Raiders arrive for a 7:00 pm tip-off. If you're headed to the game, Catholic Memorial is located at 235 Baker Street  West Roxbury, MA 02132.