Eastern B girls basketball was a little crazy this season, but there was one thing you could count on down the stretch: Winslow’s games would go down to the final minutes.
As they enter the Eastern B tournament, the Black Raiders are riding an incredible stretch of seven straight games decided by six points or less. Naturally, Winslow opens the tournament against Nokomis.
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“At Winslow, we went into two overtimes, and at Nokomis we went into one,” Winslow coach Lindsey Welch said. “It’s going to be a fun, great game.”
No. 10 Winslow at No. 7 Nokomis at 6:30 p.m., Tuesday is one of the best matchups in a big slate of high school boys and girls preliminary round games scheduled for this week. In most cases, the girls prelims are Tuesday, and the boys prelims are Wednesday. Those days are swapped for Western A and B.
While Nokomis and Winslow are familiar opponents, coaches know that at this time of year, you might be facing a team you haven’t played all season.
“I feel like when it’s a familiar opponent, you spend more time leading up to the game on what they do,” Hall-Dale girls coach Brandon Terrill said. “With an unfamiliar opponent, you spend more time on what you do. I’m not sure there’s a right answer that’s beneficial.”
Hall-Dale is the No. 8 seed in Western C, and hosts No. 9 Carrabec at 7 p.m., Tuesday. The Cobras defeated Hall-Dale, 42-35, on Tuesday.
Gardiner and Mount View both play in the Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference Class B, but their boys coaches will be preparing for the unseen when the fourth-ranked Tigers host No. 13 Mount View at 6 p.m., Wednesday.
“I’ve got ’em twice on film, but I haven’t seen ’em in person,” Gardiner boys coach Jason Cassidy said. “We expect that they’ll give us a tough game.”
Cassidy said that between injuries and having games on three consecutive days last week, the Tigers hadn’t been able to practice with a full roster until recently. Gardiner and Mt. View have eight common KVAC opponents. Gardiner is 11-2 against those teams, while the Mustangs are 3-9.
In Western C boys, No. 8 Maranacook hosts ninth-seeded St. Dominic at 6:30 p.m., Wednesday. Maranacook coach Rob Schmidt got to see the Saints play in person once this winter, and the teams also met in last year’s prelims, with Maranacook winning, 72-51.
“They have a real tall player in the middle,” Schmidt said. “I think they pretty much play a zone, and he pretty much protects the basket. We’ve got to make sure we’re not taking silly shots.”
Also in Western C boys, sixth-ranked Hall-Dale hosts No. 11 Traip at 7 p.m., Wednesday, and No. 10 Monmouth is on the road against No. 7 Old Orchard Beach. The 5-12 game has Madison hosting Mtn. Valley at a time to be determined on Wednesday. Madison defeated the Falcons twice in close games, winning by seven and five points.
“They’re very patient offensively, they’re well-coached, and it’s tough to beat a team three times,” Madison coach Jason Furbush said. “Our last two games, we played our best ball of the year — against Wiscasset and Boothbay. Hopefully, we can continue that.”
Like many Western C teams, Oak Hill also plays in the Mountain Valley Conference, but the Raiders compete in the Western B tournament. The Oak Hill girls are ranked seventh, and will host No. 10 Poland at 6 p.m., Wednesday.
“We have to play solid defense, and rebound on both ends of the court,” Oak Hill coach Charlie Castonguay said. “They’ll be very physical. The games tend to be more physical in that Western Maine Conference, and the officials let you play.”
Maine Central Institute has both its boys and girls teams in the prelims. The boys are ranked eighth in Eastern B and host No. 9 Hermon at 6:30 p.m., Wednesday. The MCI girls go in at No. 12 and head to fifth-ranked Oceanside for a game at 6:30 p.m., Tuesday. Oceanside won, 63-53, in the teams’ only meeting this season.
Also in Eastern B girls, No. 9 Gardiner is at No. 8 Ellsworth at 6 p.m., Tuesday. In Western C girls, No. 10 Madison travels to No. 7 Waynflete (6:30 p.m., Tuesday), and No. 6 Monmouth hosts 11th seed Traip.
In Western D, the Valley girls are the seventh seed and host No. 10 Seacoast Christian. On the boys side, No. 8 Rangeley plays host to No. 9 North Yarmouth Academy at 5:30 p.m., Wednesday, and No. 5 Richmond hosts No. 12 Buckfield.
Matt DiFilippo — 861-9243
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