Sports
Melrose Basketball Falls to North Andover in First Round
The Melrose High boys basketball team lost to North Andover, 55-50, in the first round of the Div. 2 North sectional.
The boys basketball team finally made it to the MIAA tournament after a long, . Unfortunately, the Red Raiders ran into Zach Karalis and a hot North Andover team in the first round of the Div. 2 North section on Wednesday night, losing 55-50 to put an early end to the Red Raiders' championship hopes.
“I’m proud of my kids,” said a disappointed Melrose coach Mike Kasprzak, “We started 2-6 and finished 10-4. That’s all I could ask.”
Karalis would lead all scorers in the game with 21 points including three big ones from behind the line and 11 points in the fourt quarter. In fact, North Andover shot well from three-point range with 27 of their points coming from that distance. Head coach Mike McVeigh said his team took advantage of Melrose’s zone coverage.
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“We knew they were gonna make a run," McVeign said. "And you just gotta tell the kids, if they’re going to gamble, you gotta make them pay for gambling. And Karalis did that, as did other players.”
The game started with both teams sizing each other up in the first quarter. It took a couple minutes for North Andover’s Karalis to make the first score. Neither team could get a run going and the quarter ended 10-9 Red Raiders.
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But, by the second quarter North Andover started to press Melrose. Slowly, the Knights pulled further ahead and the Red Raiders never saw the lead again.
“Coaches can talk, but kids play,” McVeigh said about his team’s effort, “And they played very well.”
On the other side of the court, the Red Raiders put up a good fight trying to keep the score close. The Sherlock brothers combined for 24 points, sophomore Matt for 14 and senior Ryan for 10. However, the Knights held Melrose’s big man Andrew Scocca to only eight.
The Knights will move to the quarterfinals to face a very tough Woburn team.
“It’s the best feeling to get the first win,” Zach Karalis said, “but we can’t get too high because we have a game coming up.”
That game is scheduled for Saturday, March 6. The location and time of tip off has yet to be announced.
