At first glance, it seems that Boys Basketball would be pleased to how the 2012-2013 campaign has started off so far. Coming off a 3-17 season, the Rebels took a defending Bay State Conference Herget Division champion Natick squad that many believe are primed to repeat to overtime. They then lost a heart-breaker in Newton North, 50-47; however, on Thursday night, the Rebels marked their first tally in the win column—defeating Brookline by a score of 68-46.
Mr. St. Martin, now in his sixth season as Walpole’s head coach, is not looking for moral victories this year; however, he is very pleased with the way his team is playing so far. “We saw what we could be, in stints, against Natick and Newton North; but on Thursday, we saw who we will be. I thought we played extremely well against Brookline, who is a very good basketball team,” said St. Martin.
The Rebels lost to a proficient Newton North team on Tuesday December 18. Junior guard Ryan Fogarty added 16 points to the Rebels 47, yet it was not enough as Newton North senior Korey Mui finished with 23 points and 8 boards to add to their 50. The Rebels were on the free throw line with nine seconds to go, trailing by a point, but they came up empty.
Fogarty said, “The team was really playing well in the first quarter, but then we started to cool off, and we couldn’t hit our shots. I give a lot of credit to Mui; he’s a great player . . . he was fast off the dribble and made some huge shots. Against Brookline, I will be looking to take more players off the dribble and getting into the lane.”
Fogarty did just that on Thursday and then some, leading the Rebels to a 68-46 victory over a very talented Brookline team. Overall, the boys dominated the court—scoring 36 points in the first half punctuated by an impressive three-quarter-court toss into the basket by senior Captain Johnny Adams in the final seconds. Brookline could not catch-up to the fast-paced Rebels in the second, and Walpole finished with a surprisingly easy victory.
Adams said, “(laughing) I was so surprised that shot went in from three-quarters court. On a serious note though, I thought that was a great team victory. Teams are going to be hunting for us the rest of the season, and we can’t wait to prove to the Bay State League that we are a legitimate basketball team.”
Now it’s just a matter of getting the chance to see the fruits of their labor in the win column. The Rebels will head to Oliver Ames over the vacation break for a tournament, drawing Boston English in the opener on December 27 and either Southeastern or the host Tigers on December 29. Bay State Conference league play resumes on January 4 with four straight Herget Division opponents, beginning with a trip to Wellesley.
