Bryce Wilcox, left, of Mt. Abram, looks for a pass as he’s guarded by Tyler Johnson of Monmouth Academy during a game Tuesday in Salem. Dave Dyer/Kennebec Journal

SALEM TOWNSHIP — At the beginning of the season, coach Wade Morrill was looking for some maturity and team-oriented play out of his Monmouth Academy boys basketball team.

The Mustangs took a giant step forward in both areas with a statement victory Tuesday night.

Led by sophomore guard Levi Laverdiere, who scored 27 points, the Mustangs beat Mt. Abram 69-62.

“This is a big game for us,” Laverdiere said. “We knew we had to come in, do the work and grind.”

Senior forward Bingham Abbott scored 18 points and added 13 rebounds for the Mustangs (7-4), the defending Class C champions. Sophomore forward Jacob Harmon added nine points.

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“This was the biggest win of the season for us (so far), for sure,” Morrill said. “On the road, up here, (you feel) like you’re down 15 just on the drive up. (Mt. Abram) is quick, they’re athletic. They’ve got bigs, they’ve got guards. They’ve got everything you want in a high school basketball team. They’re well coached. They play hard and tough.

“It took a tremendous amount of poise from our boys. This is the best we have distributed the ball all year, and it makes us that much more dangerous as a team.”

Mt. Abram, the No. 1 seed in C South, fell to 11-1. Junior guard Killian Pillsbury led the Roadrunners with 18 points, while senior guard Bryce Wilcox added 16.

It was a needed victory for Monmouth, which had gone 2-3 in its previous five games and was playing its fifth road game in its last six contests.

Tuesday’s game also marked the first time the two teams had met since last year’s Class C South final, which Monmouth won 46-43.

How did they do it?

While Laverdiere had a game-high 27 points, the Mustangs were able to bring a well-rounded attack to the Roadrunners. Seven different scorers contributed for Monmouth.

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Down 24-18 after the first quarter, the Mustangs fought back with a 7-0 run in the quarter and outscoring Mt. Abram 17-8 to go into halftime with a 35-32 lead.

Monmouth tightened its defense in the second half, particularly in the fourth quarter, when it forced 10 turnovers out of the Roadrunners. Mt. Abram had 21 turnovers in total.

“You can’t give Monmouth (69) points, that’s ridiculous,” Mt. Abram coach Jeff Pillsbury said. “We turned the ball over and didn’t rebound. Too many turnovers and too many second shots, and (Monmouth) is a good team.”

Abbott led a strong rebounding effort for the Mustangs, who also got six rebounds from junior forward Rory Foyt.

“We knew we had to play good defense and (rebound well) tonight,” Abbott said. “Wilcox is a great player, we knew he was going to score. We knew (Pillsbury) was going to score. We just had to play good defense and limit the fouls.”

Key moment

Up 56-50 entering the fourth quarter, the Mustangs put together a 7-0 run midway through the fourth quarter to seal the victory. Pillsbury scored eight of his 18 points in the fourth, trying his best to lead a comeback attempt for the Roadrunners. But Laverdiere answered with seven points in the quarter, including a 3-pointer.

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What does it mean?

With the win, Monmouth jumped to No. 2 in the Class C South Heal point standings, leaping over Hall-Dale (9-2), which hosts Mt. Abram on Thursday night.

The road doesn’t get any easier for Mt. Abram, which plays four of its next five games on the road, with games at Hall-Dale, Spruce Mountain, Maranacook and Madison.

They said it

“Tonight was a real maturation night. We lost a game early in the season at Wayflete, right after Christmas. We were up 16 at the half and we lost. A week later, we were up 12 over Madison at the half and we lost. Part of being a good basketball team is knowing how to close games on the road against quality, well-coached teams.” — Wade Morrill

“Credit to Monmouth. I thought Laverdiere made some tough shots early. (Aiden) Oliveira (seven points) is getting by and the dominoes started falling. We just didn’t defend well. Our bigs were leaking out to help when they didn’t need to. The dribble-drive hurt us and Abbott killed us on the boards.” — Jeff Pillsbury

Statistical leaders

Monmouth: Levi Laverdiere (27 points), Bingham Abbott (18 points, 13 rebounds).

Mt. Abram: Killian Pillsbury (18 points), Bryce Wilcox (16 points).

Up next

Monmouth: vs. Boothbay (3-7) at 6:30 p.m. Thursday

Mt. Abram: at Hall-Dale (9-2) at 6:30 p.m. Thursday

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