RUMFORD – The Mountain Valley Falcons are well versed on the advantages of depth and discipline, but they won’t mind if they get an occasional reminder like they did Tuesday night against MVC rival Georges Valley.

Matt McCann led a Mountain Valley bench that outscored Georges Valley’s 27-2, and the Falcons overcame some sloppiness down the stretch to pull out a 64-57 win at Puiia Gymnasium.

McCann scored 12 of his team-high 14 points (to go with six boards and two blocks) in the second and third quarters to help the Falcons (11-0) remain the only undefeated team in the conference.

Isaac Stickney added 13 points and six rebounds for the Falcons, while Jarod Oldham and Zach Fergola poured in eight points apiece. Brett Hutchinson paced the Buccaneers (10-2) with 21 points and eight rebounds, while David Wilgus tallied 15 points.

“We’re lucky we had Matt McCann,” said Mountain Valley coach Ryan Casey. “Matt McCann’s heart is about three sizes too big for his chest, and he just did all of the little things for us. Without him doing that, things are a lot different tonight.”

Travis Fergola (five points), Andy Shorey (four points) and Jeremy Childs (four points, three steals) also played effectively off the bench for the Falcons.

“We all just try to play our roles so we can win games,” said McCann, a 6-4 senior. “We can play everybody that sits on our bench. They’re all equally talented.”

Mountain Valley took control after a first period that saw nine lead changes with 10 second-quarter points in the paint by McCann and Stickney. The Falcons led by as much as 11 before the Bucs scored the last six points of the quarter to cut the deficit to five at halftime.

The lead stayed that way for most of the third quarter until the Falcon bench asserted itself again, using a three-point play from Travis Fergola and hoops by Shorey and McCann to widen the gap to 53-43 at the end of the quarter. The Falcons shot 75 percent for the period while holding the Bucs to 33 percent.

“Even though we knew Wilgus was so tough off the dribble, we just had to stick with our defensive philosophy,” Casey said. “Inside, we really didn’t want to let those big guys catch (the ball), but Hutchinson and (A.J.) Staples are good. I think we kept Staples from getting the ball where he wants it. Hutchinson maybe caught the ball in some easier places (to score).”

The Falcons did an effective job containing Staples (four points, nine boards), but Hutchinson scored three straight hoops in the fourth quarter to help trim the deficit to six with three minutes to go.

After taking good care of the ball in the first half (five turnovers), the Falcons got a little careless in the fourth quarter and struggled shooting (2-for-9). That allowed the Bucs to get within three when Ryan Holbrook banked a 3-pointer with 1:10 left. But Wilgus and Staples fouled out in the final 90 seconds and Georges Valley never got any closer.

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