After press time:
North Reading defeats Triton 62-45 (Jan. 24)
NORTH READING — The North Reading High boys’ basketball team picked up back-to-back home wins last week, improving to 5-6 on the season.
The Hornets defeated Amesbury 68-61 on Jan. 15 and Essex Tech, 59-33 on Friday night.
The victories snapped a four-game skid, three of which came on the road as North Reading enjoyed their home matchups with two key wins. The team now needs to win five of their last eight games to secure an automatic bid to the state tournament.
After struggling on the road in their previous three games, the Hornet defense set the tone at home against Amesbury, with NR’s full court pressure forcing turnovers and leading to a 7-2 advantage early. Senior captain Matt Myette hit two 3-pointers in the 1st quarter to pace the offense as NR went up 17-11 after one.
North Reading got good balance in the 2nd frame as they had five players score in the quarter — led by three drives to the hoop by junior Gavin Wesley. The Hornets had 18 points in the 2nd and a 35-23 lead at halftime.
The Red Hawks got to within five points late in the 4th put the Hornets iced it from the line, shooting 15-of-16 from the stripe in this one.
Myette and senior Parker Griffin each had 15 points. Wesley added 14 while juniors, captain Jason Berry (11) and Conrad Gerber (11) made it five Hornets in double figures.
North Reading kept it going against Essex Tech who came to North Reading winless in the CAL.
It was close early but the Hornets pulled away in the 2nd quarter thanks to more strong defense which led to numerous easy hoops for Berry and Myette. A 17-3 advantage in the second quarter made it a 20-point halftime lead.
The second half was a formality as all 14 players on the roster got good playing time and contributed to the win.
Berry led all scorers with 15. Myette had 12 and Wesley added 10.
The Hornets traveled to Hamilton-Wenham on Martin Luther King Jr. Day. The Generals were able to push their winning streak to eight games as they came away with a 54-38 victory, sending the Hornets to 5-7.
North Reading came ready to play, their exceptional defense in the first half combining with strong offense to dismantle a tough General zone. Gerber continued his emergence off the bench with multiple buckets at the hoop.
The Hornets led 21-16 at halftime but that lead turned into a 12-point deficit in just 2 minutes as Hornet turnovers and poor execution led to easy H-W hoops.
In the end, North Reading struggled to score and couldn’t claw back into it. Gerber led the way with 10 points.
North Reading will start their playoff push this Friday night when they visit Triton at 7 p.m. The Hornets won the first matchup 83-40 in the first game of the season on Dec. 17. After that, NR will host Ipswich (3-7) on Jan. 29 at 7 p.m.
“It’s crunch time for us,” said head coach Joe Casey. “We are struggling to shoot the ball and we have been very inconsistent but there absolutely is a path for us to qualify for the state tourney. We need to play with more urgency and put together a full 32-minute effort on both ends of the floor.”