The South division of the Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference has, over the course of the 2007-08 Eastern Maine Class A girls basketball season, proven the more powerful division of the league. Powerful, that is, if you measure power in Heal points. Defending Class A state… Read More
Everything about the Bangor boys basketball team’s 2007-08 regular season has been first in class. The Rams entered the late stages of the regular season undefeated, and rarely challenged. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner… Read More
One measure of the depth of talent within the Eastern Maine Class B boys basketball ranks is that as many as 13 different teams entered the final days of the regular season with a chance to get to double figures in victories this season. In… Read More
Five minutes, five turnovers. That, unfortunately, was how the John Bapst girls basketball team started in the 2007 Eastern Maine Class B final against Waterville, a game the Panthers eventually won en route to the state title. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes… Read More
The Class C boys basketball state champion has come from the survivor of the Eastern Maine tournament four of the last five years. George Stevens Academy of Blue Hill earned the gold ball in 2003, followed by Houlton in 2004 and Calais each of the… Read More
There will be a new Eastern Maine Class C champion this year, of that most are sure. Just who it will be, however, is something no one seems to be sure about. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes =… Read More
After watching the Central Aroostook Panthers of Mars Hill and the Deer Isle-Stonington Mariners clash for the Eastern Maine Class D championship the last two seasons, many coaches and keen schoolboy basketball observers figured this would a breakthrough year for other teams. Even the coaches… Read More
The Washburn girls basketball team enjoyed a Cinderella season last winter. However, the clock struck 12 for the Beavers in the form of an Eastern Maine Class D championship game loss to Lee Academy, now one of the top teams in Class C. googletag.cmd.push(function ()… Read More
The mystique of playing in the Eastern Maine basketball tournament has been built through several decades of memorable performances in meaningful games. Again this month, the Bangor Auditorium and the Augusta Civic Center will serve as the stages where talented teenagers continue the storied tradition. Read More
Just get in. That’s been the mantra this season in Eastern Maine Class A, where there are no undefeated teams and almost every team that makes it to the tournament has a shot. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes… Read More
You’d think the Eastern Maine Class A boys basketball tournament would be all about familiarity – all 19 teams are from the same league, the Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference. But the top of the standings offer a sense of mystery, as the top two teams… Read More
One year after losing in the Eastern Maine Class B semifinals, the Waterville girls basketball team has set itself up for a deep tournament run this season. The Panthers, who will likely head into the postseason a strong No. 1 seed and with an 18-0… Read More
Recent history suggests the Eastern Maine Class B boys basketball champion will come from the Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference. In fact, not since 2000 has the KVAC failed to produce the state champion. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes… Read More
It’s the end of an era for four-time defending Eastern Maine champion and 2006 state titlist Dexter. This is the final season for 6-foot-6 senior Mallory Ames, the younger of the sister duo – 6-4 forward Ashley Ames, a 2005 Dexter graduate, was the older… Read More
Ask Ed Leeman how many consecutive games the Calais boys basketball team has won, and his answer will differ from historical fact. The Blue Devils’ coach will refer only to games played this winter, or 18 after Calais capped off an undefeated regular season by… Read More
This winter, the Lee Academy girls basketball team has been playing with a vengeance. They have good reason to. The Pandas were bounced out of last year’s Eastern Maine Class D tourney in the quarterfinals, something coach Ron Weatherbee’s players remember vaguely. googletag.cmd.push(function () {… Read More
Last year, schedule strength forced the Deer Isle-Stonington Mariners and Central Aroostook Panthers to take a circuitous route to a regional championship confrontation. This year, it looks like the two unbeaten boys teams have a more direct path to a regional rematch in the Eastern… Read More
Playing in the Eastern Maine tournament is the goal of every high school basketball player in the region. With the Bangor Auditorium and, most recently, the Augusta Civic Center serving as their stages, a select few players spearhead their teams to championships. googletag.cmd.push(function () {… Read More
Some of the big questions surrounding this year’s Eastern Maine Class A boys basketball tournament have little to do with the actual product on the floor. That’s because the floor itself is different in 2006, with the region’s final eight advancing to the quarterfinal at… Read More
As the Eastern Maine Class A tournament moves to the Augusta Civic Center for the first time this year, you’d think Paul Vachon’s Cony girls basketball team would be excited for a chance to defend the Class A state title in their hometown. Not so. Read More
The Eastern Maine Class B boys basketball championship has been property of the Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference for the last five years. But that league hasn’t settled for just a regional title – as Camden Hills (2001, 2002, and 2005), Winslow (2003) and Erskine Academy… Read More
For most of the Eastern Maine Class B regular season, both the Presque Isle and Camden Hills girls basketball teams were undefeated. But when the tournament starts Feb. 17, all eight EM Class B representatives will have at least one loss – an indication of… Read More
With the defending Eastern Maine Class C champion Dexter Tigers having graduated two senior starters, including half of their Ames sisters inside scoring punch, many high school hoops fans figured the Tigers might be ripe for dethroning this season. The three-time defending regional champions are… Read More
Of the 78 schoolboy basketball teams in Eastern Maine, only one finished its regular season undefeated. In fact, Eastern C top seed Calais is one of just two programs among 162 boys basketball teams statewide – along with Western B’s Mountain Valley of Rumford –… Read More
The Eastern Maine Class D girls basketball tournament field has a plethora of challengers for the gold ball – ranging from the St. John Valley in Aroostook County to the Moosehead Lake Region. The challengers up north – Southern Aroostook of Dyer Brook, Greater Houlton… Read More
Once again, the Eastern Maine Class D boys tournament appears wide open with an abundance of teams in the tourney field sporting impressive win-loss records. There is no shortage of worthy challengers to defending champ Central Aroostook of Mars Hill as every round, from the… Read More
Playing in front of large, cheering crowds at the Bangor Auditorium has long been the childhood dream of many Eastern Maine basketball players. This year, there is a new venue for Class A players, who will move to the Augusta Civic Center for regional play. Read More
As many teams learned last year, anything can happen in the basketball postseason. The Presque Isle girls basketball team learned you can go into the tourney undefeated with the top seed – and lose in the first round. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var… Read More
Class B basketball has been the domain of the Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference for nearly a decade. The KVAC is home to the last four state champions in the division with Erskine Academy of South China (2004), Winslow (2003) and Camden Hills of Rockport (2001… Read More
Jody Grant considers himself to be an old-school kind of basketball coach. That’s why he’s hustled all over the state this winter watching his potential competition for the upcoming Eastern Maine Class C tournament. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var… Read More
An 18-game regular season has changed little at the top of the Class C boys basketball rankings. The Dexter Tigers began the winter as a favorite in the division, and a 16-2 record has done nothing to diminish that stature as tourney time arrives. googletag.cmd.push(function… Read More
This wasn’t supposed to be the way Lee Academy’s 2004-05 regular season went. When you graduate four of five starters from a regional title team, undergo your second coaching change in a year, and pin your hopes on returning to the regional finals for a… Read More
Playing basketball in front of large, cheering crowds at the Bangor Auditorium is the childhood dream of many Eastern Maine youngsters. This year, that particular dream comes to an end for players in Class A as the EM tourney will be moved to the Augusta… Read More
Looking for a no doubt, odds-on, no-brainer ironclad lock to win the Eastern Maine Class D boys basketball tournament? Hmmm, Central Aroostook of Mars Hill is a preseason favorite, perennial power, and losers of just one game this season. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot… Read More
Three programs teeming with recent tournament experience – Foxcroft Academy, Camden Hills of Rockport and Erskine Academy of South China – have risen to the top of the Eastern Maine Class B schoolboy basketball standings, something not totally unexpected when the 2003-04 season began. “I… Read More
Jeff Hudson had never been to Rockland before, so you’ll forgive the coach of the undefeated Presque Isle girls basketball coach if he didn’t exactly know he was actually in Rockland when he stopped at a Wendy’s fast-food restaurant there before a recent Tigers game against Winslow. Read More
Nobody wants to concede defeat before they step on the court, but Eastern Maine Class C coaches will admit it’s hard to imagine anybody but Dexter emerging from this year’s tournament with another regional championship. The defending EM champion Tigers will be in the hunt… Read More
Here’s a few shards of information to help you figure out who’s going to emerge as the 2004 Eastern Maine Class C boys basketball champion. On a recent Friday night, Stearns of Millinocket edged Schenck of East Millinocket in overtime. Three nights later, Houlton topped… Read More
Playing basketball in front of large crowds at the Bangor Auditorium is the childhood dream of many Eastern Maine youngsters. Within the next few years, with the future of the Auditorium uncertain, the Eastern Maine basketball tournaments may be moved elsewhere. googletag.cmd.push(function () { //… Read More
The top of the 2004 Eastern Maine Class D girls basketball tournament field is like a trident. No, not the sugarless gum that three out of four dentists recommend to their patients who chew gum … We’re talking about the three-pronged weapon associated with sea… Read More
A year ago, they were the new kids on the block. A rag-tag basketball team that had only one set of uniforms (home) and no home gym to play in. Still, they were the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Maine Class D boys tournament… Read More
It is the unknown that makes a Class B Eastern Maine Tournament matchup of a Camden Hills and Foxcroft Academy or an Erskine Academy and MDI so intriguing. The teams don’t know each other. They don’t play each other. They don’t see each other. googletag.cmd.push(function… Read More
The Mount Desert Island girls basketball team knows how to prepare for the tournament. After all, the Trojans have won two straight Class B state championships and are among the clear favorites to repeat as Eastern Maine winners. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var… Read More
Can a team that doesn’t have a starter over 6-feet-1 win the Eastern Maine Class C tournament? Can teams come up with the defensive effort to out-defense one of Eastern Maine’s best defensive teams? googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var… Read More
A unique combination of team speed, height unheard of for a Class C team, smarts, shooting touch, power – and that 18-0 record – have made the Dexter girls basketball team a favorite to take its first Eastern Maine Class C championship. But there are… Read More
Coaches say almost the the same thing almost every year when it gets close to Tournament Time: Almost anyone can win this thing. The tournament is wide open. Well guess what. When it comes to the 2003 Eastern Maine Class D boys hoop tournament …… Read More
Experience on the Bangor Auditorium floor is pivotal during tourney time and could play a key factor in the fortunes of the defending state champion Woodland Dragons when the Class D quarterfinals open on Saturday. The top 16 teams in Class D each had to… Read More
It’s difficult to determine exactly how many Eastern Maine basketball tournaments I’ve attended, but a glance at the press ribbons pinned into the bottom of the cork bulletin board in the den shows the number is at least 17 … And still counting. Whatever the… Read More
To hear most coaches tell it, Eastern Maine’s Class B tournament should come down to the two divisional top seeds: defending state champ Camden Hills in the Southeast and the versatile and athletic Bucksport Golden Bucks in the Northeast. The standings certain add credence to… Read More
Tournament spectators won’t likely see a lot of reshuffling from last season when the top Eastern Maine Class B girls teams hit the Bangor Auditorium for the regional competition. Mount Desert Island, the top-ranked team in the Northeastern region standings and the defending Class B… Read More
Another year, another Eastern Maine Class C tournament filled with standout teams. There are no shortages of top-flight teams with impressive records in either the Northeast or Southeast divisions as the latest version of the controversial open tournament hits the Bangor Auditorium. googletag.cmd.push(function () {… Read More
Was there a Class C girls basketball team that had more preseason buzz than the Dexter Tigers? Sure, Calais was the defending Class C state champion, but with almost everyone back on the team, there wasn’t much mystery surrounding the Blue Devils. googletag.cmd.push(function () {… Read More
Bangor Christian coach Gary Colson knew that his team would be among the contenders for the Class D title after a strong performance in last year’s tournament, where it upset its way to the semifinals. But the Patriots have far exceeded Colson’s expectations, running up… Read More
Call it what you will, this old, ugly barn on Buck Street. Call it the Mecca, like some do. Call it the Auditorium. That’ll work. People will know exactly what you’re talking about. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes… Read More
Playing basketball in front of large, exuberant crowds at the Bangor Auditorium is the childhood dream of thousands of Eastern Maine youngsters. During the course of the 2002 Eastern Maine basketball tournaments, more than 550 high school players from 72 teams will suit up in… Read More
When a wrist injury forced Woodland’s Ashley Marble to miss eight games in the middle of the season, her defending Class D state champion Dragons could have been expected to struggle. But even if the Dragons had to lose Marble for a time, coach Arnie… Read More