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EAST MACHIAS – When Calais defeated Downeast Athletic Conference rival Washington Academy earlier this season, the Blue Devils scored 88 points while outrunning the Raiders.
In Monday night’s rematch, the two-time defending Class C state champions maintained their high-scoring ways, but this time with a punishing half-court attack.
Senior guard Sam Bell was the catalyst, scoring a game-high 23 points to go with seven rebounds and six assists as Calais remained undefeated this season and extended its overall winning streak to 51 games with a 79-58 victory over WA at Gardner Gymnasium.
“Last time we played them, we got into too much of a running game and didn’t run any offenses,” said Bell, who shot 10 of 16 from the field. “But today coach [Ed Leeman] kind of wanted to slow it down, so we did, and we played better defense, too.”
Calais (7-0) did have its share of fast-break opportunities but was quite content to work the ball to the lane where Bell, junior center Cal Shorey and senior forward Rod Tirrell did considerable damage.
Shorey finished with 14 points and five rebounds, while Rod Tirrell added 12 points, five rebounds and three blocked shots. The Blue Devils also received solid performances from guards Jordan Leeman (nine points) and Nathan O’Neill (eight points, five steals) and freshman forward Cam Shorey, who added seven points and six rebounds.
“We’ve been trying to work on discipline, trying to make sure that we get a high-percentage look,” said coach Leeman. “With our size and the players we have, we need to know what our strengths are. WA’s strengths are speed and quickness, so if we shoot quick, they’re going to run out quick.
“We wanted to make sure we got high-quality looks, and I thought most of the shots we took tonight were good shots.”
That offensive work was complemented by solid half-court defense, as Calais forced 26 Washington Academy turnovers and limited the Raiders to a 38 percent (22 of 56) shooting night from the field.
“We wanted to make sure we got back defensively, closed out, and we still had to guard the 3 because they’ve got three or four kids who can stick the 3 if they’re hot,” said coach Leeman. “They’re a tough matchup. We played fairly well tonight, I thought.”
Senior center Joey Hunter led 4-3 Washington Academy with 14 points and a game-high 13 rebounds. Matt Smith, Robby Smith and Ben Teer each added 10 points for the Raiders.
“We couldn’t press because we couldn’t score,” said Washington Academy coach Kenrick Liburd. “We couldn’t run because we couldn’t get stops.”
Calais broke the game open midway through the second quarter after WA had taken a 21-18 lead on consecutive follow-up baskets by Bryce Colbeth and Hunter.
The Blue Devils answered with 13 unanswered points, a run that epitomized their ability to seek out the best possible shot – all five field goals were set up by assists.
Cal Shorey made two free throws to start the run before Tirrell gave Calais the lead for good at 23-21 on a 3-pointer with 5:29 left in the half. O’Neill then stole the ball and fed Bell for a layup before adding a basket from the low post.
Sean Cavanaugh then took a Bell pass in for a layup, and Cal Shorey capped off the run with a follow-up shot to give the Blue Devils a 31-21 lead with 3:15 left before intermission.
Calais led 40-28 at halftime due to an offense that shot 54 percent from the field – including 4 of 4 from 3-point land – thanks to 14 assists on its 17 field goals.
“The kids do share the ball well,” said coach Leeman. “They move the ball, they’re unselfish in that regard. The half-court sets are something we’ve been working on, but we still need to get better at it, we still need to get more disciplined.”
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BLUE DEVILS 79, RAIDERS 58
Calais (7-0) WA (4-3)
Player G AG F AF TP Player G AG AF TP
Cal Shry 6 13 2 2 14 Hunter 6 15 14
Cavnaugh 2 4 2 2 6 Lehman 1 1 2
Carr 0 1 0 0 0 Nicely 1 2 4 6
Cam Shry 3 7 0 0 7 Beach 0 1 0
Bell 10 16 1 4 23 Gauthier 0 0 0
O’Neill 4 8 0 0 8 M. Smith 4 10
Leeman 4 8 1 2 9 R. Smith 4 10 2 2 10
Tirrell 5 9 1 2 12 Colbeth 2 2 4
Blake 0 0 0 0 0 Morren 0 0 0
Teer 3 13 3 10
von Rotz 1 7 2
Totals 34 66 7 12 79 Totals 22 56 13 16 58
Calais 18 40 55 79
Washington Acad. 17 28 42 58
3-pt. goals – Calais (4-6): Bell 2-2, Cam Shorey 1-2, Tirrell 1-2; WA (1-8): Teer 1-6, R. Smith 0-1, von Rotz 0-1
JV: Washington Acad. 47-40
Attendance: 450 (est.)
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