Timing key for D.I.-S victory

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BANGOR – Bryant Ciomei knows when the timeouts are coming.

They rarely have to do with defense, because the Deer Isle-Stonington boys basketball team is nothing if not persistent in their man-to-man sets.

When the timeouts do come, they likely have to do with shot selection – and it was just such a respite Thursday that spurred the No. 1 Mariners to a 65-55 victory over Lee Academy in an Eastern D semifinal at the Bangor Auditorium.

“That’s when the timeouts come in handy, when we’re taking quick shots,” said Deer Isle-Stonington guard Bryant Ciomei, who scored a game-high 19 points. “We sit down and identify that we’re taking those quick shots, and it makes it so much easier to stop.”

The 17-2 Mariners will face No. 6 Central Aroostook of Mars Hill in Saturday’s 10:45 a.m. final. The 20-1 Panthers topped Schenck of East Millinocket 73-61.

The crucial timeout of the semifinal came midway through the second quarter, after Lee had taken a 23-19 lead.

“We told the kids that we could get to the rim, and that we needed to get the ball back inside,” said Mariners coach Glenn Billings. “We were settling for quick shots and weren’t being patient.”

Deer Isle-Stonington then ran off 10 straight points – and never trailed again.

Junior forward Jon Eaton sparked the run with eight straight points before Ciomei hit two free throws to give Deer Isle-Stonington a 29-23 lead with 3:30 left in the half.

From there Lee was left to play a dogged brand of catch-up, and while the No. 5 Pandas threatened and threatened, they got no closer than three points at 41-38 on a spinning move by junior forward Tom Bird with two minutes left in the third quarter.

This time the Mariners didn’t need to call time, instead getting a buzzer-beating 3-pointer from junior forward Shane Eaton to take a 46-39 lead into the final period.

“We were crunched for time, and Rob thought he had a nice lane but they collapsed on him and it opened things up for the 3-point shot,” said Eaton, who scored 12 points, eight in the third quarter.

Bird and Peter Pickering combined for 16 fourth-quarter points for Lee, but every time the Pandas put together a pair of baskets, Deer Isle-Stonington responded at the free throw line, where the Mariners made 11 of 14 down the stretch.

Jon Eaton finished with 10 points and seven rebounds, teaming with freshman Eben Powers to give Deer Isle-Stonington strong production off the bench while starting center Collin Ciomei (nine points) battled foul trouble.

“Those guys coming off the bench can really step up and pick up for the other guys,” said Billings.” The other guys know if they get the ball down to Jon on the low block or Eben on the low block, they’re going to finish.”

Bird scored 21 points for Lee, while Kris King added 11 points and Pickering scored 10.

MARINERS 65, PANDAS 55

Lee Acad. (12-9) DI-Stonington (17-2)

Player G AG F AF TP Player G AG AF TP

Connick 0 3 0 0 0 Powers 2 2 6

Houghton 3 6 0 0 6 C. Ciomei 2 9

Parker 0 0 1 2 1 J. Eaton 4 10

Pickering 4 10 0 1 10 Douglass 0 0

Thmpson 2 7 0 0 6 Brown 0 1 2

King 4 7 3 3 11 B. Ciomei 6 8 19

Bird 7 12 7 17 21 S. Eaton 4 11 12

Kelly 0 0 0 0 0 Billings 1 7

Crocker 0 1 0 0 0

Boulrisse 0 0 0 0 0

Totals 20 46 11 23 55 Totals 19 33 21 33 65

Lee Academy 16 27 39 55

Deer Isle-Stonington 17 33 46 65

3-pt. goals – Lee Acad. (4-15): Pickering 2-4, Thompson 2-4, Houghton 0-1, Crocker 0-1, Connick 0-3; Deer Isle-Stonington (6-11): B. Ciomei 3-5, J. Eaton 1-1, Billings 1-2, S. Eaton 1-2, C. Ciomei 0-1.