BELLINGHAM, Mass. - Dedham turned a two possession game into a 15-point lead midway through the third quarter and never looked back, taking down Milford 56-43 in the opening round of the Barry Hutchinson Basketball Tournament.
The Marauders turned a 29-23 lead at halftime into a 39-25 lead with just under four minutes to play in the third quarter.
“I honestly think it completely determined the game,” Milford head coach Paul Seaver said of the third quarter. “It was a six point game at half and summits when you have a close game at half, it all depends on who comes out more motivated, who comes out making more plays and Dedham was that team.”
The Scarlet Hawks had the lead in the first quarter, going up as much as six at 12-6 just over five minutes to play in the quarter, but Dedham closed the quarter on an 8-2 run and the teams finished the first quarter level, 14-14.
The second quarter is when Dedham was able to create some separation, extending their defense and turning turnovers into points and a 29-23 lead at halftime.
Dedham big man Hakeem Animashaun was a big difference on both ends of the court, contesting nearly every shot Milford had in the paint and forcing traps from the Milford defense on the offensive end of the court. Animashaun ended up with 17 points, 15 rebounds and five blocks.
“They went zone and he’s legit 6’7” and he’s a defensive shot blocker no doubt about it,” Seaver said. “Even when we wanted to penetrate the zone, he made it difficult and forced a lot of outside shots. He stepped up when they needed it the most.”
Aminashaun played a small role in Dedham’s big run in the third quarter as Jack Powers (10 points, six rebounds) and Daisean Michel (game-high 18 points) had more to do with that. But with the separation created, it was Aminashaun that kept the lead where it was in the fourth quarter.
Leading 41-32 heading into the final frame, Aminashaun picked up eight points and six rebounds to keep Dedham in the lead.
Milford’s Dwight Anderson had a double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds. Senior Brian Kibbee added seven points, Alex Croteau chipped in six points and four rebounds and Nate Davila had six points and six boards. Alex Macek had five points and six boards off the bench.
Aminashaun’s size on defense showed as Milford jacked up 21 three point attempts and only saw one fall, a shot from Kibbee with 35 seconds left in the game.
“We have to bounce back,” Seaver said. “That’s an advantage of these tournaments, you can bounce back the next day especially after a loss. That’s have to be our goal, we need to bounce back tomorrow and continue to plug forward.”
Milford drops to 1-4 on the season but will be back in action on Sunday when they play at Bellingham at 3:00 in the consolation game.
Ryan Lanigan can be contacted at [email protected] and followed on Twitter at @R_Lanigan.