WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. – The Mount Greylock boys basketball team Monday used a 21-2 first-half run to break the game open and cruised to a 68-28 win over Franklin Tech.
Seamus Barnes scored 21 points and grabbed eight rebounds, and Max McAlister scored 10 while passing out six assists as the Mounties won their second straight and evened their record at 2-2 heading into a Christmas hiatus.
“One of the problems we’ve been having with this young team is just finishing,” Mount Greylock coach Bob Thistle said. “The big difference from Drury to Lee, when we went from a loss to a win is that we came out with a lot of energy. We came out pretty flat. Drury played a great game against us, but we came out flat.
“We can work every day on fixing trying to finish, as one example. But you can’t fix energy. You have to bring energy all the time. So, back-to-back nights when the kids brought a lot of energy.”
Mount Greylock took a modest 15-6 lead with 2 minutes, 30 seconds left in the first quarter when McAllister set up Judge Martin (eight points).
But after Ty Sadoski (team-high 13) scored a pair in transition for the Eagles, Mount Greylock took complete control.
Barnes scored off an assist from Martin and scored again from the foul line to push the margin to 11 points at the end of the first.
Mount Greylock started the second with nine straight points, including a 3-pointer from Jackson Shelsey (eight points), a basket from Barnes in transition and a hoop and an assist from McAllister.
Franklin Tech got on the board to make it 28-10, but Mount Greylock then scored eight more in a row, starting with a McAlister 3 and ending with a putback from Elias Robinson to make it 36-10.
The visitors showed some life at the start of the second half, when Mount Greylock outscored the Eagles by a margin of just 9-8, but Barnes scored seven points in a 21-0 run that stretched into the third quarter to make it 66-21.
“We just had trouble finishing the last couple of games, and we just figured out how to put the ball in the hoop,” Barnes said.
“For most of the game, we just played really well as a team. We passed the ball well and moved the ball well and came out with energy, which is what we want. Max [McAlister] is a great passer. He moves the ball really well. It’s great to have him as a point guard.”
Chase Doyle scored nine points and grabbed eight rebounds as Mount Greylock earned a 43-23 edge on the glass.
“Just having size doesn't mean you’re going to rebound well,” said Thistle, whose team had a height advantage on Monday night. “It comes down to will and wanting it more. And I think the kids did a good job.
“Right out of the gate in the second half, [Franklin Tech] got two or three baskets. We were sloppy with the ball. And we got into them a little bit just about taking care of the ball. And they did a good job with that.”
Mount Greylock is off until Dec. 28 when it goes to Smith Academy.
