PEABODY — For a team that is still learning to win while also adjusting to a different style of play under a new head coach, the progress of the Bishop Fenwick boys basketball team might be sporadic.
But it is indeed happening, and Friday night’s home victory over Cardinal Spellman is proof of that.
Senior forward Nate Allder scored 20 points and Fenwick came out and played a much better defensive half after the break, leading to a 63-57 victory on their home court.
Not only was it the squad’s second straight win, but it was also Bishop Fenwick’s first Catholic Central League victory over an opponent other than Cathedral in three seasons.
“We’re getting better, which is a really good sign,” head coach Chris Timson, the esteemed Fenwick alumnus and former hoop star, said after his club improved to 3-6 on the season. “Since the (Bishop) Feehan game, the energy and effort has been great, and you can see the guys building off of it.
“We haven’t really led late too much, so it was good to see the guys keep fighting and maintain it throughout the fourth quarter.”
Down by five at halftime (31-26), the Crusaders went to a triangle-and-2 defense to try and disrupt Spellman’s Rayzhan Innocent (11 first half points) and Deon Santos (8). It worked exactly as planned, as the sharpshooting duo combined for just two points over the final 16 minutes of play.
“You have to be able to adjust on the fly sometimes,” said Timson, “and for not practicing or going over the triangle too much, I thought the boys did a great job of executing it.”
Offensively, Fenwick heated up and turned that five-point deficit into a 4-point lead (46-42) after three quarters. Domenic Panniello-Torres scored 10 of his 12 points in that frame by driving to the net twice, connecting once from underneath the hoop, hitting a free throw and burying one of his team’s two 3-pointers.
The hosts extended that lead in the fourth quarter behind Allder, freshman left-hander Damon Matargas (9 points, including a corner 3-pointer to make it 57-48), and two clutch free throws by senior captain Brady Jenkins (6 points) with 6.2 seconds left to ice it.
“Nate’s been really consistent for us, someone who attacks the rim and rebound swell. He leads by his body language and his effort,” said Timson. “Dom plays well when he attacks in the paint and plays in control, like he did tonight.
“We had a lot of sparks tonight off the bench, too,” he added. “(Senior) Keagan Harrington was definitely one of those guys; he’s adjusted to playing a new position (forward, having previously been a guard), which is a testament to his practice work and attitude. He hit a big basket for us (which made it 39-37, giving Fenwick its first lead since the first quarter).”
Timson also noted Mataragas’ play off the pine (“he has no fear”), as well as junior Jean Romelus playing well defensively and hitting three big free throws in the second half.
The Crusaders will look to win their third straight game on Martin Luther King Jr. Day when they play at KIPP Academy in Lynn (11:30 a.m.).
Bishop Fenwick 63, Cardinal Spellman 57
at Bishop Fenwick Gymnasium, Peabody
Cardinal Spellman — Umarei Murray 6-4-18, Ben Clark 0-0-0, Deon Santos 4-0-10, Joey Ebian 8-8-18, Rayzhan Innocent 4-0-11, Ephraim Lormil 0-0-0, Humphry Karori 0-0-0, Josh Volcy 0-0-0. Totals 22-5-57.
Bishop Fenwick — Brady Jenkins 2-2-6, Brayden Clifford 0-1-1, Nate Allder 9-2-20, Vincent Finocchio 2-0-4, Domenic Panniello-Torres 6-1-14, Keagan Harrington 1-0-2, Jake Bellacini 2-0-4, Ryan Hartigan 0-0-0, Damon Mataragas 4-0-9, Jean Romelus 0-3-3, Alejandro Aguilar 0-0-0. Totals 26-9-63.
Halftime: Cardinal Spellman, 31-26.
Three-pointers: CS, Innocent 3, Murray 2, Santos 2, Ebian; BF, Panniello-Torres, Mataragas.
Records: BF, 3-6; CS, 3-9.