SALEM — After one bucket, Salem High announcer Johnny Robinson playfully dubbed senior captain Corey Grimes ‘The Big Cat.’
The nickname was particularly appropriate on this night, since Grimes played a huge role in declawing the visiting Beverly Panthers.
Behind 10 fourth quarter points from their senior big man and some stout first half defense, Salem took down the rival Panthers, 58-46, Friday night at Veterans Memorial Fieldhouse.
Twice in the fourth quarter, the Panthers (7-9) made big 3-pointers (by Jacob Klass and William Ryan) to cut a Salem lead that was 19 at its largest down to nine. On both occasions, Grimes splashed a triple of his own to make sure Salem (11-5) kept its distance from the visitors.
“Corey played unbelievable,” said Salem coach Tom Doyle. “He’s been steady for us all year and he’s a kid that contributes in different ways. But 14 points is a big offensive night for him. And the big spots those points came in made it spectacular.”
The second of those 3-pointers came with 4:14 to go. Beverly cut the lead down to nine a couple of other times over the last few minutes but couldn’t get any closer. The Panthers attacked the rim and drew fouls while fouling at the other end to extend the game, but Salem made enough of their freebies and got a couple of transition lay-ups breaking Beverly’s press defense to ice the victory.
“We followed the game plan and hit the shots necessary down the stretch,” said Doyle, whose team has qualified for the state tournament in each of his 21 seasons (save the COVID cancelled ’21 tourney). “Those situations are new to our young guys and they stepped up huge. Our veterans led the way, too.”
Excellent first half defense helped the Witches build a lead they never relinquished. The hosts ended the first quarter on an 11-0 run and Beverly went nearly eight minutes without a field goal before Danny Pierce made a 3-pointer early in the second. The Panthers shot 1-for-9 in the first quarter and 4-for-19 in the first half. While there were some missed long range shots in that bunch (1-for-8), the Orange-and-Black were just 3-for-11 in the paint.
Grimes and freshmen Jordan Maxson and Elian Rodriguez combined for nearly 20 rebounds. Denying second chances has been big for Salem, which has won three in a row and six of its last eight … while holding opponents under 50 points in each of those six wins.
“We’ve getting better defensively and this was another step in the right direction,” said Doyle. “The kids are working hard at it and its paying off.”
Sophomore Nate Lane scored eight of his 13 total points in the second quarter as Salem build a 16-point lead by halftime. Lane, a 5-foot-10 guard, was very active on the defensive end and got the majority of his points by getting to the basket in the paint.
“Nate’s a scrappy kid and plays as hard as he can non-stop,” said Doyle. “He makes things happen on both ends of the floor.”
Maxson had a team-best 15 points for Salem with 13 of those coming in the first half. Rodriguez scored nine and a 3-ball by Eddie Butler on the first possession of the third gave the Witches their largest lead at 19 points.
That’s when Beverly, and specifically Klass, came alive. The sophomore guard scored seven points during an 11-0 Panther run that made it a ballgame and finished with a game-high 17 total points. Classmate Ben Zaniboni, who scored nine, totaled nine rebounds and had a number of offensive caroms during the keys runs in that third quarter.
Though Beverly made more points in both the third and fourth quarters than they did in the entire first half, scoring just two points in the first made it too steep a hill to climb. The Panthers must now win three of their final four games to qualify for the Division 1 playoffs.
“Beverly put us in an awkward spot when they got the momentum. But our guys played through it and grabbed it right back,” Doyle noted. “I was very proud of how we responded to their run.”
Salem 58, Beverly 46
at Veterans Memorial Fieldhouse, Salem
Beverly;2;11;15;18;46
Salem;11;18;12;17;58
Individual scoring
Beverly: Klass 5-4-17, Ryan 2-2-7, Diaz 1-0-2, Zaniboni 4-1-9, Pierce 3-0-8, Stevenson 1-1-3, H. Silva 0-0-0, Sullivan 0-0-0, C. Silva 0-0-0, Okhuozagbon 0-0-0, Saas 0-0-0. Totals 16-8-46.
Salem: Maxson 6-2-15, Ryan 0-0-0, Butler 1-0-3, Rodriguez 3-3-9, Grimes 6-0-14, Lane 5-3-13, Ozuna 1-1-4. Totals 22-9-58.
Three-pointers: B, Klass 3, Pierce 2, Ryan; S, Grimes 2, Maxson, Ozuna, Butler.
Halftime score: S, 29-13.
Records: B, 7-9; S, 11-5.