At times last year, Ryan Fogarty would force the issue, in large due to his unfamiliarity with his teammates. However, now, with one whole season under his belt in a Walpole uniform, there is a noticeable improvement in his game.

With Oliver Ames focusing on limiting senior Scott Arsenault at the offensive end Sunday December 29, Fogarty scored a game-high 31 points to earn MVP honors as Walpole (4-1) captured the Muscato Tournament with a 63-59 win over the host OA.

Before the game, Coach Dave St. Martin was unsure if Fogarty was going to be able to suit up because of his nagging ankle injury, but sure enough, he was in the lineup to start the game.

The first half was a rather even basketball game, with both teams getting their way on the offensive end. Fogarty led the way with 11 points and senior Captain Adam Quinlan added eight to give the Rebels a 34-31 edge after two quarters.

To start the second half, however, Walpole took off: going on an 8-0 run with four points each from Fogarty and sophomore Kenny Uhlar. Oliver Ames called a timeout, but Fogarty continued to get to the free throw line.

The Rebels had a 17 point lead to start the fourth, but Oliver Ames started to make some 3’s that had not been falling earlier in the contest. With 5:47 to play, Walpole only had a 50-45 lead, and  it started to look like the Hingham debacle again. However, this time,  Fogarty came up big: picking off an OA pass in the frontcourt and going the other way for a bucket to push the lead to 58-51 with 3:25 to play.

Fogarty, who was the MVP of the Christmas break tournament, finished with 31 points; Quinlan had 12 points, 14 rebounds and five blocks, which was enough to earn him a spot on the all-tournament team.

Boys Basketball starts Herget Division play on Sunday, January 5 at 1:00 against rival Natick.