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The Newburyport boys basketball team has made its regular season statement.

After losing back-to-back games to open the season, the Clippers won 17 of their last 18 games thanks to some lights out offensive showings as well as a number of stout nights on defense.

The 17-3 record, and all the wins that gave coach Tom LItaliens boys the No. 2 seed in the Division 3 North tournament, are inconsequential to how the crimson-and-gold are feeling headed into todays first round match up with Lynn Tech (7-13).

We said to the kids the last few days that the big picture is in. Now, its about doing the little things we did to get to the big picture. Everyone knows how we play. We know how we play, said LItalien.

Itsgetting up and down the floor both offensively and defensively. Its sharing the ball on offense and on defense, getting back to good basics with conversion defense, help angles, ball pressure, communication off the ball and finishing with a box out. Itsabout a whole bunch of little things adding up to the big thing at this point in the year.

It will be the first home playoff game for a Newburyport boys basketball team since 2013 when they beat Hamilton-Wenham 43-42. This years Clippers lost just once in their own gym, and it came in the season-opener against North Reading.

I think its huge for us. We havent had a home tournament game in a few years, so its huge. Were really looking forward to it, said senior captain and downtown sharpshooter Nick Rogers. I couldnt have asked for a better season so far. All the new guys on the team fit in well with everybody and we have a good mix of seniors and underclassmen.

The contribution from the elders and the younger guys was evident in the teams final game of the regular season when the Clippers put up 98 points in a 23-point win over Innovation Academy in which Rogers and fellow senior captain Brendan Powers, as well as sophomore Casey McLaren, all went over 20 points.

Todays opponent plays a similar style to the Red Tailed Hawks as Lynn Tech boasts an athletic roster with a few guards who can push the tempo and score off the dribble.

The one common opponent the two squads have is Mystic Valley, which blasted the Tigers, 74-46 earlier in the season. The Clippers edged MV, 56-50 in the second to last game of the regular season.

Theyre an athletic team. There will be a lot of 1-on-1 match ups on defense so it comes down to us on defense shutting down our man 1-on-1 and then on offense, play as a team and move the ball, said Powers, who talked about what the Clippers are doing when theyre locking things down in their own end.

Everyones talking. We are good at the point of attack and they guys in back are letting everyone know whats going on. When they shot goes up, everyone says shot, is boxing out and then running in transition.

Port has the athletes to win a track meet if thats what Lynn Tech wants to turn the game into, just as the Clippers did when Innovation Academy turned up the tempo.

The Newburyport offense can get buckets in the paint thanks to the length and athleticism of Powers and McLaren, but the Clippers are most dangerous when the guards are driving to the basket and kicking to open shooters. Rogers, Cam MacRae, Rob Shay, George Coryell, Ronnie Mwai and Brian Hadden all see time as guards while McLaren is equally deadly on the perimeter and Powers can shoot from the outside.

Theres some nerves going on. This will be some guys first tournament game, and its a home tournament game, but overall I think were all anxious to get out there, said Rogers. We know we put in the work to get to the spot we are at.

A win tonight would advance Newburyport to the second round, where the Clippers would take on the winner of Triton hosting Pentucket tomorrow night.

As far as looking at the bracket and potential match ups down the road, LItalien said its already been addressed in his locker room.

Sometimes when people see seedings they think of March Madness and they want to fill out brackets. Thats a tournament (where seedings are done) by strength of schedule and your team and not based on your record. The way the MIAA does it is based on win/loss, said LItalien, pointing out that Lynn Tech may be worst seed in the bracket but that it plays a tough schedule, won the Commonwealth Conference and had to win four in a row to close out the regular season just to make the dance.

Theyreplayign their best basketball right now, so we need to focus and play 32 minutes of Newburyport basketball ... were players and coaches, not spectators. We cant get caught up in the brackets.

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If the first two meetings were any indication, Tuesdays tilt between Triton and Pentucket should be close.

Very close.

The Vikings defeated the Sachems twice, but both games were three-point losses with Triton taking the first by a 53-50 score and the second, 55-52.

Head coach Dave Clays Vikings rely on team defense, and when they need a bucket, they feel good about going to either senior captain Jack McCarthy, who hit a thrilling game-winner late in the season to beat North Reading, or junior captain Will Parsons. Colin Brennan and Liam Spillane (senior captain) and Chris Trotta are all good two-way players.

Pentucket meanwhile likes to spread the scoring around, but has its fair share of weapons in Conor ONeill, Nathan McGrail, Gus Flaherty, Spencer Pacy and Jimmy Cleary.

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Amesbury will head to Bedford (14-6) tomorrow night for their playoff tilt after winning 5 of its last 6 games to qualify for the tournament.

Senior captains Kyle Martin, Eric Dawes and Will Parady set the tone for the Indians, who do have some solid size with Martin, Parady and Cam Leary (senior) as athletic scorers who rebound very well.

John Sydlowski, Billy Sydlowski, Timothy Hudsonand the rest of the Indians will have to find the magic they used late in the season if theyre going to upset Bedford on the road. If the Tribe pulls out the win, theyll earn a date with the winner of No. 3 Weston (17-3) and No. 14 Saugus (7-13) in round two.

Excerpt from:
PLAYOFF PRIMER - The Daily News of Newburyport