SOUTH EASTON, Mass. - Foxboro used big runs at the beginning of each the first and second quarters to create a comfortable cushion and used that to beat Southeastern, 76-60.
The Warriors got off to a quick start, opening the game on a 9-0 run to take a 24-13 lead after just the first quarter. Foxboro then broke the game wide open with a 10-0 run to start the second quarter and took a comfortable 19-point lead, 42-23, into the halftime break.
Senior center Cam Seeley dropped 16 of his career-high 26 points in the first half and junior forward Robby Lowey added five of his nine points as the Warriors dominated in the paint.
“I think our inside game really opens everything up for us,” first year Foxboro head coach Jon Gibbs said. “We have a really talented front court and we always try to go inside first and get some high percentage shots. That opens it up for the guards and I thought we did a good job of that in the second quarter.”
On Foxboro’s game-opening run, eight of the nine points came from the paint with the ninth coming from the free throw line after an and-one down low. Jonathan Carnino netted all seven of his points in the opening minutes and Lowey added another with Foxboro getting three offensive boards.
In the second quarter, Seeley picked up six points in Foxboro’s 10-0 run with Tom Rogers getting a bucket and Austin Ryan adding two free throws.
Late in the first quarter, Gibbs elected to extend his defense, which equaled strong results for the Warriors. Foxboro continued their press in the second quarter, wearing down the Hawks. With a lot of energy spent trying to break Foxboro’s press, the Warriors were able to pick apart the Hawks on defense.
“We knew coming into the game they weren’t a deep team,” Gibbs said. “They only played about seven guys in their normal rotation. We wanted to really try to wear them down with our pressure and make sure our energy level was up. So we tried to really feed off of our defense and get some easy baskets. And in the second quarter especially we were able to do that and that’s how we got some separation.”
Foxboro dominated on the boards, finishing with a 39-21 edge in rebounding. Lowey and Seeley combined for 15 boards while contesting nearly every shot Southeastern tried to take in the lane. The Hawks ended up jacking up 17 three-pointers while just taking 37 two-point field goals. Foxboro was 27/49 from inside the arch.
Maybe more impressive than 26 points for Seeley was at the 75% clip he shot at.
“They both work really hard day in and day out in practice,” Gibbs said. “Robby has become more and more confident as his role has expanded and he’s gotten more varsity playing time. Cam obviously has a lot of athletic ability and with each passing day his skills and his footwork become more and more polished. And that shows, his touch around the rim and his footwork in the paint have really improved.”
The Hawks tried to creep back in the second half but junior Alex DuBrow came up with eight his 10 points in the third quarter, a period where both teams dropped 17 points apiece. Southeastern upped their offense in the final quarter, outscoring the Warriors 20-17.
Foxboro (3-1) will be back in action on Friday when they take on Sharon (3-2).
Ryan Lanigan can be contacted at [email protected] and followed on Twitter at @R_Lanigan.