Vikings tip Rams 83-79 in three OTs

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Caribou is far too stubborn a ballclub to concede defeat. The Vikings showed their tenacity and guts Monday night at Barry Gym in Bangor.

Caribou battled back from a nine-point deficit in the last 2:39 of regulation, came back from six points down in the first overtime, and finally shook off Bangor in the third overtime period while eking out an 83-79 Big East Conference basketball victory.

John Griffeth scored four huge points in the third overtime to help Coach Jeff Holmes’ Vikings complete their heart-stopping win. Caribou improved to 11-2, avenging an earlier loss to Bangor and earning some valuable Heal Points.

The Vikings’ 1-2-1-1 full-court pressure and 1-3-1 half-court trap paid dividends in the late going, enabling Caribou to stave off defeat in the thrilling fourth quarter and extra periods.

“I’ve got some tough kids and they really like to full-court press,” a smiling Holmes said. “Bangor’s a good team because they handle the ball well, but when you do press, sometimes you can get those (scoring) runs. I was just hoping we could get a run. This is a big win.”

Bangor appeared to have the game in hand, holding a 57-48 lead with 2:39 to play. Coach Roger Reed’s Rams, now 8-3, came up with some heroics to force a third overtime, but were outscored 8-2 in the final 1:33 of the contest.

Trailing 77-75 in the third OT, Caribou finally regained the upper hand. Griffeth scored on a drive to the basket with 1:33 left, was fouled, and made the free throw to put Caribou on top 78-77.

Griffeth made a foul shot with 31 seconds to play to make it 79-77. Bangor’s Mark Reed missed on a drive to the basket and the Rams committed a turnover on their next possession after a missed free throw by Ron McAtee, who then made two from the line with 11 seconds to play to help the Vikings hold on.

Bangor appeared in control in the fourth quarter. Reed scored five points amidst a 14-0 spurt that turned a five-point deficit into a 57-48 Bangor lead with 3:03 left.

But the Vikings weren’t done. Jason Belanger buried a 3-pointer with 2:39 to go in regulation to ignite a 12-0 run. Belanger scored a layup off a steal and feed by Traves Lapointe, then made a layup after a Griffeth steal with 1:42 remaining.

Lapointe added a conventional 3-point play with a layup and foul shot, set up by a Griffeth assist, as Caribou went on top 58-57 with 1:25 left. McAtee made a baseline layup at the 55-second mark, but Mark Reed swished a 3-pointer 19 seconds later to force OT.

The Rams built another small lead in the second extra period when two Reed free throws, a basket from down low by Chris Pickering and Bill Newman’s steal and layup put Bangor on top 68-62 with 1:03 left. But Belanger kept the Vikes close with a 3-pointer.

Trailing 71-69, Lapointe scored off an inbounds pass from Griffeth as the buzzer sounded and was fouled by Pickering. But Lapointe’s foul shot bounced twice on the rim and off.

In the second OT, Bangor’s Newman hit a 14-footer from the lane, but Caribou answered with Lapointe’s hoop from close range and one free throw each by Belanger and Griffeth. It took a driving layup by Bangor’s Reed with two seconds left to force the third and final overtime.

Belanger sparked Caribou with a game-high 24 points and added five rebounds and three assists. Lapointe tossed in 19 points, while McAtee contributed 11 points, six in the overtimes, and snatched 12 rebounds.

Chris Funk provided 10 points and six rebounds, with the versatile Griffeth chalking up eight points, seven assists, five rebounds and two steals. Gary Donnelly chipped in with nine points.

Newman led the way for the Rams with 21 points. Reed finishepoints, grabbed eight rebounds, and handed out eight assists. John Tennett had 11 points, nine rebounds, and four assists and Bradford came up with 10 points, 12 rebounds, and five blocked shots.

Vikings 83, Rams 79 (3 OTs)

Caribou Bangor

Name AG G AF F TP Name AG G AF F TP

Griffeth 7 2 7 3 8 LeClair 0 0 1 0 0

Babbidge 1 0 0 0 0 B.Newman 19 10 0 0 21

Gahagan 3 1 2 0 2 Bradford 11 4 3 2 10

Lapointe 13 9 5 1 19 Tennett 5 2 10 6 1 Lapointe 13 9 5 1 19 Tennett 5 2 10 6 11

Belanger 21 9 6 3 24 Heistand 4 2 0 0 5

Donovan 2 0 0 0 0 Subjoc 6 3 2 1 7

Funk 6 3 4 4 10 Reed 16 4 11 9 19

Donnelly 6 1 8 7 9 Pickering 3 2 4 2 6

MacAtee 8 4 7 3 11 Clark 0 0 0 0 0

Totals 67 29 38 21 83 Totals 65 27 31 20 79

Caribou 8 26 48 60 71 75 83

Bangor 11 27 43 60 71 75 79

3-pt. goals: Caribou ( ): Griffeth 1-2, Belanger 3-8, Donnelly 0-2; Bangor (): Newman 1-1, Bradford 0-1, Tennett 1-1, Heistand 1-1, Reed 2-4.