McGrath Leads Taconic into State Quarter-Finals

PITTSFIELD, Mass. -- Kyle McGrath Wednesday turned in a dominant performance to lead the Taconic boys basketball team to a 71-51 win over Apponequet to reach the quarter-finals of the Division 3 State Tournament.

 

The senior center scored 18 points, grabbed 21 rebounds, blocked five shots and passed out four assists to earn sixth-seeded Taconic a home game against No. 14 Boston Latin Academy, a 63-62 winner over Newburyport in their Sweet 16 matchup.

 

"Our length, I think, bothered [Apponequet]," Taconic coach Bill Heaphy said. "Kyle got some huge rebounds. He didn't feel that well, but you wouldn't know it. He was huge. He got his hands on a lot of ball and altered shots. He was huge."

 

The Thunder found itself tied with the Lakers late in the first quarter.

 

But Nate Reynolds (14 points) dropped in a 3-pointer from the left wing corner with an assist from Ceasar Santos (12 points) to give Taconic the lead for good at 30-27, and McGrath set up a triple from Quentin Christopher (18 points, eight rebounds) to make it a six-point lead at half-time.

 

Taconic then scored the first 18 points of the third quarter to complete a 24-0 run and establish a double-digit lead it never relinquished.

 

Apponequet stayed in the game early thanks to 15 first-half Taconic turnovers.

 

"We've had that issue all year, unfortunately," Heaphy said. "And we work on it. It's probably needing to get the ball in better spots, keep it off the sideline, keep it out of the corners, have the right guy having the ball -- that kind of thing. We've also got to do a better job with guys getting open. Sometimes we force things that aren't there.

 

"So it's a combination. But we keep working at it, and hopefully we will improve."

 

Despite those miscues, the Thunder had a 21-13 lead early in the second quarter after a 3 from Santos made it 21-13, but the Lakers scored the next six to make it a one-possession game, and that is where it stayed until Taconic's late push to end the half.

 

Coming out of the locker room, Taconic looked like a different team.

 

"We needed to not turn the ball over and play simple, keep it simple and rebound and play great defense," Heaphy said of the half-time adjustments. "We tried to keep an eye on [Will Levrault]. He's a good player. I felt we did a pretty good job on him."

 

Santos started the third with a pull-up in the lane, and Martin Boua (10 rebounds) capped the decisive run with a putback to make it 51-27 with about a minute left in the quarter.

 

The visitors managed to chip away and get the margin down to 16 points with four minutes left in the third. Apponequet then was forced to turn the game into a free-throw shooting contest, putting the Thunder on the line seven times in a minute and a half.

 

Taconic missed just enough shots to keep things interesting, but Reynolds sank a pair with 2 minutes, 38 seconds left to make it 68-46, all but eliminating any hopes of a miracle for the Lakers.

 

Now Taconic takes on the Cinderella of the D3 bracket, a Boston Latin Academy team that is 17-5 with two single-digit wins in the tournament.

 

"It's huge," Heaphy said of being home in the Round of 8. "It takes three hours off the travel, for sure. Playing at home, the kids can get a better meal and a better night's sleep. I think it all matters. But then once you're on the floor, both teams are hungry and both teams are ready to win. You've got to get your game ready and get ready to go."

 

Photos from this game to come.