Following the regular season of Walpole Recreation Basketball, every team made the playoffs and were given their final rank. The top two teams were given bye’s and the rest of the league played in the first round on Sunday, February 25. With six games being played, the winners now move on to the second round in addition to the top two teams, the Mavericks(1) and the Warriors(2). The second round of the playoffs will be held on Saturday March 3, with all games being at Walpole High School.
After the Mavericks finished the regular season 9-2, they were awarded a first round bye for being the number one seed. With the senior trio of Jack Casey, Henry Dundon, and Michael Kagy, the Mavericks season high was 88 points against the Heat in an eight point win. In the second round, the Mavericks will play Kevin Sullivan’s eighth seeded Lakers who beat the ninth seeded Spurs, 97-56.
With sophomore Jack Magane in the main focus, the fifth seeded 76ers finished the regular season 9-3. For the first round they played the young 12 seed Celtics. The 76ers won 68-58 and now move on to the number 13 Heat, who finished the regular season with a 5-7 record. For their first playoff game, the Heat went into the game looking up at the 7-4, fourth seeded Knicks consisting of seniors Sean McCarthy, Diego Dorronsoro, and Riley Banks. Seniors Billy Killeen and Kyle Smith, and the rest of the Heat upset the Knicks, 70-54.
Finishing the regular season 7-3, the Magic were ranked as the third seed, matching up against the last place Nuggets. The strong duo of juniors Victor Navarro and Alex Troncoso defeated the Nuggets. They now face senior Dan O’Leary and the sixth seeded Nets in the next round of play. Led by veteran coach Brendan Croak, the Nets ended their season 7-6, setting them up against the 11 seed Sonics in the first round. The Nets came out victorious in the first round, winning 61-46.
Ending their regular season at 9-3, the second seed Warriors earned a first round bye. The large junior built team will now face the 10 seed Rockets, who upset the seven seed Wizards. Seniors Zach Schultz and Matt Conti, along with the rest of the Wizards lost to the Rockets, 57-46. With a final regular season record of 5-7, the Rockets will have an even bigger challenge facing the Warriors.
