BOSTON, Mass. - Dorchester came flying out of the gates with plenty of energy, especially on the defensive end while Mansfield struggled to get much going.
But all that Dorchester had to show for it was a two-point lead after the first quarter.
“I think a lot of it, being a young team, is guys just not ready,” Mansfield head coach Michael Vaughan said. “[Ryan] Boulter missed a few early shots and they did a good job on [Michael] Boen early and I think their team speed just bothered guys that weren’t ready. Our defense kept us in the game and then once we settled down a little bit, and got the lead we were able to control the tempo like we like to do.
From there on out, the Hornets were able to get into a groove on both ends of the court, limiting Dorchester to just eight points in the second quarter on their way to a 64-54 win.
Mansfield (4-0) were led by the usual suspects as Ryan Boulter dropped a game-high 18 points and Michael Boen grabbed his third double-double in four games with 17 points and 15 rebounds. He nearly had a triple-double as he added eight assists.
The Hornets were able to turn a two-point deficit after the first quarter into a four point lead at halftime. After Boulter was able to tie the game at 16, Dorchester continued to focus their attention on him and Boen, leaving the window open for other Mansfield players and Nicholas Baskin took advantage. The junior scored seven straight points for the Hornets and helped Mansfield take a 28-24 lead into the break.
The second half was more of the same from Dochester’s offense, which preferred going isolation and setting up one on one battles with early shots in the possession. Defensively, Dorchester couldn’t match their early intensity and Mansfield dropped 36 points in the second half.
“We tend to be better against those teams,” Vaughan said of teams that choose to go isolation on offense. “I think it was a lack of experience and we haven’t seen like a team like that. It was one of the reasons we wanted to play here and play a team like that. It’s a lot different style then running sets.”
The Hornets had started the fourth quarter on a quick 4-0 run to extend their lead to 47-37 when the Boen brothers came up with key plays to completely ice the game. First, sophomore Max hit older brother Michael with a bounce pass and Michael drove to the hoop for two. Dorchester converted a bucket and a free throw to try to get back into it, but Max drained a three pointer to give the Hornets a 52-40 lead.
“Big back to back baskets for us, with Max just stepping into one,” Vaughan said. “He’s in an awkward position because he likes to shoot and I’m telling him he has to shoot without in the offense. I’m glad he was able to knock one down and he’s starting to get into a rhythm and I think he’ll be okay as the season goes on.”
From that point on, the lead only went into single digits once (59-51 with 1:01 left).
Though Michael Boen has yet to lead the Hornets in the scoring column this year, his third double-double of the year proved he’s leading the team as a whole.
“His leadership on both sides of the floor is just tremendous,” Vaughan said. “He’s getting rebounds on both sides, he;s bringing the ball up once and a while, he’s inbounding the ball. Right now he’s doing a little bit of everything and on a day like today where Boulter couldn’t really find his shot, it was nice to know we could win without him dropping 30.”
Mansfield will next take on Attleboro (1-3) this Friday at 3:30.
Ryan Lanigan can be contacted at [email protected] and followed on Twitter at @R_Lanigan.