Above the Rim: D1 boys basketball teams get an early taste of March

The Division I boys basketball tournament doesn't start for more than two months, but that didn't keep the four teams that played in the Chick-Fil-A Holiday Tournament from experiencing a playoff-like atmosphere last week.

Attendance at the tournament was good overall, despite last Tuesday's weather, and the final two games - which featured Nashua South and Alvirne in the third-place game and Nashua North and Merrimack in the championship - had the kind of crowds that typically don't show for another couple of weeks.

"It was a great atmosphere," South coach Nate Mazerolle said. "It was a real tournament atmosphere with the fans at both ends of the court. Even (Tuesday), the number was pretty good with the weather. It looked packed."

Merrimack and North didn't disappoint in the championship game, playing the type of game one might expect to see come playoff time.

"We saw two of the elite teams here playing in this game," Mazerolle said. "Those are two of the better teams in the state without a doubt. I don't know if we're at that level yet. We know we have a lot to do to be able to compete with those two teams."

For North, it was a great chance for the Titans to see how they stack up against the rest of the division.

"It shows the kids on the North side, that's a team (Merrimack) that's projected to be a top four team in the state, and it gives the kids confidence to hang when them," North coach Steve Lane said. "As far as a high school basketball game goes, that was as good as it gets."

Confidence boost

Alvirne's win over South for third place gave the Broncos two wins in the tournament, but it was the way they got that second win that made the week a success for coach Brian Lynch. After a third slow start in three games, Alvirne came back to take the lead and withstood a couple of shots from the Panthers

"That's a huge confidence booster for us," Lynch said. "I don't think we were settling for the 3 as much and we were missing easy shots that we'd normally make. We just needed to relax and keep playing and those shots would fall."

It was a surprise to some who was making those shots when Alvirne needed them in the fourth quarter. With South focusing on Dan Brown, it was sophomore Max Bonney-Liles who put the Broncos on his back, scoring 14 points in the quarter to get the win.

"That was huge," Lynch said. "For anybody on our team, it was no surprise. We know how good of a player Max is, but it's good to see him step up. That's a huge confidence booster for him going back into the season. It takes a lot of pressure off kids like Dan Brown, so he doesn't feel like he has to do it all."

Back to the grind

The Division I schedule resumes Tuesday for both the boys and the girls.

Some big matchups on the boys side include South heading to Bedford, Merrimack hosting Trinity and Manchester Memorial visiting Alvirne. Also, Pinkerton heads to Winnacunnet in what could be the biggest game of the night.

Two of the top girls teams will meet in Nashua, as Londonderry visits Bishop Guertin, while Winnacunnet plays at Pinkerton.