Boys basketball: Wiscasset nips Buckfield in Class D South quarterfinals

AUGUSTA — Buckfield had an opportunity to force overtime, but Wiscasset was able to hold on for a 49-47 victory in a Class D South boys basketball quarterfinal Saturday at the Augusta Civic Center.

After Landin Shirey hit one of two free throws for a 49-47 lead for fifth-seeded Wiscasset, fourth-seeded Buckfield rushed down the court and Gaven Parsons’ shot from the paint hit the rim but didn’t go down. A second-chance opportunity came after the buzzer, but it also hit the rim.

“It was a good look,” Buckfield coach Jon Cadman said. “I thought it was going to fall. I think I jumped as high as I could.”

Cadman said Parsons played well in the second half.

“He’s a late starter. We tried to get him going early, but he’s a timid kid,” Cadman said. “Once he gets involved in the game, he gets going a little bit.”

Parsons finished with six points.

The teams split the regular-season matchups, with Wiscasset (10-9) winning 54-46 on Dec. 28 and Buckfield (9-10) winning 56-46 on Jan. 27.

“That’s the third time we played Buckfield and all three games were tight,” Wiscasset coach Jamey Roy said. “It’s two teams with similar styles. Neither team has a lot of offensive skill yet. Both teams got after it hard and played defense. We knew it was going to be a tough game.”

Shirey, a freshman, had a game-high 21 points for Wiscasset.

“We have been working hard,” Shirey said. “In practice, we have been working hard. Our coach puts us through it.”

Brayden Monto and Trenton Haskell led Buckfield with 13 points each.

It was Haskell’s first game of the season because he suffered an injury right before it started this past fall.

“He’s been out since our first practice before the game versus Carrabec here,” Cadman said. “He’s been out until today. He has practiced, but this was his first actual game. To get him going was nice to see.”

Wiscasset entered the fourth quarter with a 34-33 advantage and back-to-back shots from Alex Richard and Spencer Pinkham-Smith extended the lead to 39-33. Pinkham-Smith then stretched the lead to eight.

Buckfield responded with its own eight-point run to tie the game at 41-41, with Haskell recording two 3s.

“I told my guys all week, playoff basketball is that; it’s going to be a grind,” Cadman said. “You have to take care of the ball. Every possession matters.”

After the teams traded baskets, Haskell hit another trey for a 46-43 Buckfield lead. Ismael Martinez scored to get the Wolverines within one before Shirly’s 3 put Wiscasset up a 48-46 lead. Haskell hit a free throw to get within one.

“We missed two foul shots that would have iced the game,” Roy said of the final 30 seconds. “I am a chubby guy; I am surprised I didn’t have a heart attack.”

Braden Cousineau helped the Bucks to an early 6-2 lead by scoring four points early in the first quarter.

Both teams struggled from the field. Richard and Jevar Garricks scored for Wiscasset to get within 6-5. Haskell’s two free throws gave Buckfield an 8-5 advantage after the first.

Garricks started the second quarter with a 3-pointer to tie the game and Richard’s two free throws gave the Wolverines a 10-8 lead. Monto hit a bucket and then a 3 to give the Bucks a 13-10 lead.

Buckfield took an 18-13 lead into halftime.

“We needed to keep attacking the paint, keep getting to the rim, don’t settle for outside shots,” Cadman said of his halftime message. “Shooting at the Civic Center, it’s hard with the backdrop.”

Both teams warmed up in the third. Monto had five points and Parsons had four as Buckfield scored 15 in the stanza.

Shirey scored 15 of Wiscasset’s 21 points in the quarter. He had four 3s in the period.

“My coach told me to put my head in the game and actually play,” Shirey said.

Shirey is coming off a broken foot and came back late in the season.

“He’s a 14-year-old kid, and he didn’t play much because of the injury,” Roy said. “He had one point at halftime — he was 1 for 2 at the line — and he was a little discouraged. But I told him, ‘We need you; you are our scorer.’ He went out in the second half and knocked them down.”