Date Posted : 07-08-2010 Written by: Dave Haley

Alex Burt will try and help New Hampshire end a two game slide

 There is a great scene at the end of the movie ‘Pulp Fiction' where Harvey Keitel's character Winston ‘The Wolf' Wolf receives a call from Quentin Tarantino telling him he has a major crime scene in the back of his car and only an hour to get it cleaned before his wife gets home. Wolf asks "Where do you live?" and after Tarantino gives him the address he replies, "That's thirty minutes away. I'll be there in ten."

 Ten minutes later Wolf is at the door and introduces himself, "I'm a man who solves problems."

 Head basketball coach EJ Perry is going to Vermont this weekend to solve what is fast becoming a problem for the New Hampshire Twin-State basketball team. A game in which victory has historically seemed like a right of passage for New Hampshire seniors has now seen two straight losses against Vermont. One loss is simply a defeat, two losses are a trend. Three losses and we'll have ourselves a bona fide losing streak in a rivalry (NH holds an 18-11 lead in the series) we once owned. 

 Perry won two Class L basketball titles at Salem high school during his tenure, oversaw one of the most successful volleyball programs in the state and may be best known for a victory that didn't even win him a title; a 2004 semifinal upset of a Trinity team that featured four Division I players.

 If you had your pick of any coach in the state to send for a game you absolutely/positively had to win then Perry is near if not at the very top of the list.

Date Posted : 07-06-2010 Written by: Dave Haley

Jordan Laguerre in action for New Hampton Prep.

 Former Trinity high school star & Players Lounge member Jordan Laguerre has signed on to play for former Minuteman guard and Memphis assistant coach Derek Kellog at UMass. Laguerre, who will be a senior at New Hampton in the fall, repeated his junior year at the Lakes Region prep school in 2010 and is currently playing in the BST Gate City Classic.

 Laguerre was named WGAM's Mr. Basketball in 2009 in leading Trinity high school to their first Class L basketball title since 1985. Laguerre averaged 20 points per game in his junior season and capped off the year by scoring 26 points against Manchester Memorial in the final.

 Our friend Marc Thaler of the Manchester Union Leader has full details on the move Click Here.
 

Date Posted : 05-14-2010 Written by: Dave Haley

Zach Mathieu is WGAM's Mr. Basketball for 2010

 Pinkerton Academy senior and future Franklin Pierce first baseman Zach Mathieu is the winner of the 2010 WGAM Radio Mr. Basketball award. Mathieu led Pinkerton Academy to their first state title since 1990 and led Class L with 20 ppg. over 22 games. He is a deserving choice.

 The ceremony took place at the Radisson in Nashua and Pete Tarrior hosted the event, interviewed the finalist and announced the winner live on the radio.

 The finalist were; Alex Burt of Dover, Zach Mathieu of Pinkerton, David Madol of Trinity, Sean Martin of Conant and Alex LaRosa of Salem.

 This is the second year in a row my friends at WGAM have asked me to be one of the voters for the award. It is a privilege to be involved with the award and a vote I take very seriously. I thought I would reveal my final ballot and give you a sense of why I voted the way I did.

Date Posted : 03-31-2010 Written by: Dave Haley

Shelden Benson of Class I runner-up Pembroke Academy

One final round of the ‘Thursday Thoughts' before we move on to our new and improved baseball and softball coverage.

For the first time I was able to be at all four championship games. Let's take a look at all four divisions.

Lingering thoughts from those four tournaments...

There really is just a great feel to a Class S tournament crowd. Unlike big schools like Pinkerton and Salem you really feel like the entire town has made the trek to Plymouth for the Class S tourney. I pictured downtown Groveton (is there even a downtown Groveton?) looking like the scene in ‘Hoosiers' during the championship game when they show an empty main street and the movie theatre with a sign that says ‘Closed for the big game.' Plymouth was sold out for the Friday night championship game and although it was an often times sloppy affair, you couldn't beat the atmosphere.

Date Posted : 03-29-2010 Written by: Eliot Bless

White Mountains advanced to the Class M semifinals as a 14 seed

We want to announce the latest New Hampshire business to support the coverage of high school athletes' Littleton Chevrolet will be sponsoring the coverage of Littleton high school sports and articles throughout the year.

We move to Eliot Bless's re-cap of the 2009-10 basketball season and will have our final Thursday Thoughts column for basketball this week.

How do you sum this years boys high school basketball season up in just a few paragraphs?  The answer is you don't.  Over the course of the last 4 months I've had the privilege of traveling to Class L, I and M gyms all over the state to watch some really good basketball.

With all the talk of realignment, rivalries and class name changes, one thing remains constant, the passion and exuberance is alive in each and every gym I made my way to.  Whether it was the tiny Milford HS gym, home of the Class I Champions, or the unique arena of the Winnacunnet Warriors, every school and community I visited rallied around their kids in support.  From chanting students, cheering parents and even a show of emotion from a few police officers on duty, the towns, cities and fans of NH is what make this so much fun for the kids, and the fans themselves.

Let's start with Class M.  I didn't see a ton of games from the soon to be Division III but I was able to check out the Class M Semifnals.  What a evening of basketball.  The heavy favorite and eventual Champion Conant HS and Mascoma played one of the better games I saw all year.  There's something to be said for the Conant brand of basketball, and coupled with Berlins victory over the cinderella White Moutains, Class M showed that they can play some hoop.

Date Posted : 03-25-2010 Written by: Dave Haley

Harry Knowles and Winnacunnet land at #3 in the Power Rankings

Today we take a look at our final Power Rankings for the 2009-10 basketball season as we rank the top 16 teams in New Hampshire. All four champions are ranked; Pinkerton Academy in Class L, Milford in Class I, Conant in Class M and Groveton in Class S.

We'll look at how 2010 ended and how 2011 is shaping up for the sixteen best teams in New Hampshire. Next week I will have my final thoughts column of the year which wraps up all the insights from an entire year of high school basketball in New Hampshire, lingering tourney thoughts, a debate on a new tourney system and my 12 man team if I was to choose the top seniors to take on Vermont in July.

Date Posted : 03-24-2010 Written by: Dave Haley

Pinkerton Academy won behind their twin towers of Proulx and Mathieu

 At 2-2 Pinkerton Academy looked like the same inconsistent basketball team that we had last left seen walking off their home floor after an embarrassing 26 point home playoff loss to Alvirne. When I covered their 5^th game of the season against Londonderry they looked just like the team I expected to see; a sometimes-dominant frontcourt leading an inexperienced backcourt. They looked quarterfinal bound and out of any real title discussion.

 Well something clicked because the light bulb went on for this team. Pinkerton finished the season winners of 13 of their last 14 games and this was a polished basketball team that played well under pressure. They hit foul shots, they broke pressure and most importantly; they got the ball to the most dominant player in Class L Zach Mathieu.

 Today we take a look at the top performances in Class L basketball in 2010.

Date Posted : 03-23-2010 Written by: Dave Haley

Players Lounge member Mike O'Loughlin and Milford are Class I Champions

 In the end it was the team people thought would win it all along that took the title but it wouldn't be as simple as Milford gliding through a four game coronation. In what might have been the game of the year Milford held off defending champion Portsmouth in an overtime thriller that will be talked about for years. Milford completed their mission by beating a very good Pembroke Academy team in the final.

 Was this the first stage of a Milford dynasty? It may be. No team will return more talent in 2011and Milford goes into next season fighting for the distinction of the best basketball team in the state of New Hampshire in addition to a back to back title run in their division.

 Today we take a look at the top performances in Class I in 2010.

Date Posted : 03-22-2010 Written by: Dave Haley

Conant is now winner of a record 5 Class M titles in row

Conant set a New Hampshire boys basketball record with their 5^th title in a row and now own a remarkable streak of 105 wins in 106 games. The question is; is the door now open for other Class M teams with the graduation of Sean Martin, Jimmy Peard and Kemph Kim? It would seem so but this is a JV program that has been nearly as dominate as the varsity program. The cupboard is hardly bare. Does Eric Saucier return as head coach? He lives in Concord, teaches at Con-Val and coaches at Conant, how long does that last? These are questions for another time. For right now this is one of the five best teams in New Hampshire and unquestionably the top basketball program in the state.

 Today we take a look at the top performances in a very strong year for Class M basketball.

Date Posted : 03-21-2010 Written by: Dave Haley

Groveton won their 6th Class S title in 12 years

 All throughout the regular season people talked about how all four divisions were more wide open than ever and that this year, more then the previous two, would produce a Cinderella team that would come out of nowhere to play for the title.

 Thank God for Littleton then because the 8 seed was the only non-top seed in any of the four divisions to advance to the title game. What we got were three 1 vs. 2 match-up's and #3 Groveton vs. Littleton in Class S.  Groveton used their pressure defensive and ability to control the boards to win their 6^th title in 12 years. Today we take a look at the top players, coaches, performances of 2010 as well as the teams to look for next season in Class S basketball.