MV loses basketball season finale to Weston, 64-48

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Chase Silvia drives the ball. — Photo by Lynn Christoffers

The Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School boys basketball team (10-10) lost the last game of the regular season to Weston High School (4-6) by a score of 64-48, on Sunday afternoon at the Sancy Pachico fieldhouse in Oak Bluffs.

The only high point of the contest came at halftime, when MVRHS Principal Peg Reagan and the crowd honored junior Erin Hill, the Vineyard girls varsity basketball team’s scoring leader, who scored the 1,000th point of her career last week.

The visiting Wildcats drained 12 three-point shots, including four of five in the opening quarter, and employed a clogging, handsy defense to defeat the Vineyarders for the second time this season. Despite the loss, the Vineyarders have qualified for the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA) state tournament, which begins Monday, Feb. 29. The opponent and the site have yet to be determined.

Ricardo Andrade scored 11 points, Mike Power scored nine points, and newcomer Miles Jordi added seven to lead Vineyard scoring. Liam Wrean led the Wildcats with 21 points, including six treys.

Dylan Araujo gave the Vineyarders their only lead of the game, 2-0, with a jumper in the first minute before Weston’s offense took over, building a 20-9 first-quarter lead. Weston led 29-18 at the half, after an OK second quarter. The Vineyarders got off track in the third quarter.

Weston extended its lead to 49-33 after three quarters, despite a Vineyarder third-quarter surge led by Ricardo Andrade and Krishna Datta which cut the lead to 11 points.

Vineyarder big man and rebounding leader Luke deBettencourt had a long and physical afternoon under the basket, as the Wildcats packed the paint, forcing the Vineyarders to play long ball as the Redshirts swarmed the basket to contest every rebound.