By Randy Whitehouse,Staff Writer

AUGUSTA – The key to today’s Western Class C final between No. 1 Hall-Dale and No. 2 Wiscasset is quite plain, and, as was proven by one of the most amazing fourth-quarter performances in the history of Augusta Civic Center, it’s a lot easier said than done.

“We’re going to try to contain Conrad Griffin and let some other guys beat us,” Hall-Dale coach Chris Ranslow said.

Boothbay tried the same formula in Thursday’s semifinal, and executed it very effectively for the first 28 minutes or so. They held the two-time Mountain Valley Conference Player of the Year to one field goal and nine points through the first three quarters and forced him to the bench with foul trouble shortly after opening a 17-point lead after three quarters.

“It was a nightmare, and then it turns out to be a fantasy,” said Wiscasset coach Matt Cook.

The fantasy Cook referred to is already becoming part of tournament lore. With his team down by 13, Griffin re-entered the game with 4:30 left, hit a 3-pointer 13 seconds later, and triggered a 19-5 Redskin run with four 3-pointers and 16 points in less than four minutes that ultimately led to a 53-51 win.

As Boothbay learned, and Ranslow will stress to his players, you have to contain Griffin the entire 32 minutes. Not 16 or 24 or 28 minutes.

“He’s a great player,” said Cook. “He’s player of the year two times in a row in our conference and a 1,000-point scorer. When he gets hot, he can just go off and score 11 or 12 points straight. That’s the kind of special player he is.”

Griffin averages 21 points for the Redskins, and Ranslow wouldn’t be against him meeting that average, much like he did in the Bulldogs’ 74-55 win in their only regular-season game.

“If he goes for 20 points, that’s good for us as long as it takes him 18-plus attempts to get it,” Ranslow said.

While the Redskins (15-5) will only go as far as Griffin takes them, the Bulldogs (19-1) are the most balanced team in Western C, as Wiscasset learned when Hall-Dale put five different players in double figures in their previous meeting.

Slashing senior forward Ben Laflin is averaging 26.5 ppg in the tournament, but the key for the Bulldogs’ offense is center Matt Wheelock (15.5 ppg in tournament), a 6-9 senior with good range and court vision, who often makes opposing defenses pay when they double him by finding Laflin or 6-7 forward Jon Hill cutting to the hoop or guard Jack Leet for a wide-open 3-pointer.

“I know we’re pretty comfortable on this floor, which is unlike Hall-Dale. We’re usually not very comfortable on this floor,” Laflin said. “I think we feel at home here now, and it’s going to be hard to beat us on this court, just like it’s hard to beat us at home.”