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BANGOR – New faces. Same old result.
Valley of Bingham brought its latest version of a boys basketball team to the Class D state championship Thursday night and, for a state-record sixth consecutive year, took home the gold ball. And for the second year in a row it was at Bangor Christian’s expense.
The Cavaliers outscored Bangor Christian 21-13 in the second quarter to take control of the game and came away with a 58-46 win at the Bangor Auditorium.
The 21-0 Cavaliers used the inside strength of 6-foot-5 senior Kevin Miller and the outside shooting of junior guard Mark Gaudet, who said he never saw a shot he didn’t like.
“I like to shoot the ‘3.’ I like every shot. If they give me the look, I’ll take it inside,” Gaudet said.
Thursday night he liked “the ‘3.’” After a sluggish first quarter, Gaudet, who finished with 25 points, came out firing in the second and third. He launched 13 3-pointers on the night, connecting on three.
But two of the three came in the second quarter when the Cavaliers grabbed the game and didn’t let it go.
The 18-5 Patriots had no answer for Miller, who scored six of his 10 points in the second quarter, all coming on twisting and turning moves that kept the Bangor Christian defenders at bay.
Additionally, Valley forward Kirk Robinson did a number on Eastern Maine Class D tourney most valuable player Josh Madden.
Robinson’s deny defense limited the junior to five first-half shots and six points through two quarters.
“I was supposed to try to deny him the ball. I was supposed to stop their top scorer and maybe get in their heads a bit,” Robinsons said.
Madden became more assertive in the second half and finished with 17 points before fouling out with 1:37 remaining. He gave credit to Robinson.
“He played some real good defense. He was in my shirt all night,” Madden said.
The Patriots also did a better job on Miller in the second half. Senior Ben Sobey and his brother, freshman Eric Sobey, took runs at the senior, limiting his touches on the ball.
“In the second half, they wouldn’t even let me touch the ball. Their second-half defense was great,” said Miller, who had 11 rebounds and two blocks.
The Patriots whittled away at the lead during the third and fourth quarters. But each time they appeared to have life, Gaudet stepped in and made something happen. He scored all nine of the Cavaliers’ third-quarter points, including a huge 3-pointer after the Patriots had cut the lead to 10 midway through the third quarter.
Still, the Patriots didn’t go away and cut the margin to seven points at 49-42 with 2:42 to go. But by this time Bangor Christian was in a chase-and-foul mode and the Patriots repeatedly sent Gaudet to the free throw line where he hit 8 of 9.
Sophomore Lucas Melcher had 10 points for the Cavaliers.
Senior David Chrisos closed out his basketball career at Bangor Christian with 15 points. Chrisos, a Wendy’s High School Heisman national finalist, missed last year’s state title game when he was severely injured in a car accident.
As for Gaudet, not only does he love shooting the “3,” he also isn’t afraid to look into a crystal ball and tells you what he sees.
“We’ll be back next year,” he promised.
After six in a row, who could argue with him?
CAVALIERS 58, PATRIOTS 46
Valley (21-0) Bangor Christian (18-5)
Player G AG F AF TP Player G AG AF TP
Hibbard 1 2 0 0 3 Astle 0 2 0
Atwood 0 1 0 0 0 Madden 7 14 17
Melcher 3 11 3 5 10 Denbow 0 0 1
Robinson 1 1 0 0 2 Patterson 0 12 0 0 0
Hovey 2 4 1 1 5 Chrisos 5 15 15
Gaudet 7 18 8 9 25 E. Sobey 2 11 3 7 7
Miller 5 8 0 4 10 B. Sobey 1 2
Hyland 1 1 0 0 3 McCleary 2 4
Totals 20 46 12 19 58 17 63 11 23 46
Valley 11 36 45 58
Bangor Christian 15 24 36 46
3-pt. goals ? Valley (6-21): Hibbard 1-2, Melcher 1-5, Gaudet 3-13, Hyland 1-1; Bangor Christian (1-16): Astle 0-1, Madden 0-1, Patterson 0-5, Chrisos 1-7, E. Sobey 0-2
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