Big second quarter lifts Bedford boys basketball past Merrimack (video)

BEDFORD - The best teams find a way to win when things are a bit of a mess.

Such was the case Tuesday night for the Bedford High School boys basketball team.

Out of sorts at the start, the Bulldogs put things together long enough in the first half to take a commanding lead at halftime and went back and forth with Merrimack in the second on the way to a 74-56 win in a Division I contest.

Down 10-7 with just under four minutes left in the first quarter, Bedford outscored Merrimack 34-9 over the remainder of the half to lead 41-19 at the break. The Tomahawks closed the gap to 15 points late in the third quarter, but the Bulldogs (14-0) were able to keep Merrimack (5-8) at bay to remain unbeaten in division play.

"It was a mess," Bedford coach Frank Moreno said. "It was tough to get into a flow. We didn’t run as well as I’d hoped. It was just a very physical game. I expect that from Merrimack, they’re always a physical team.

"Overall shot selection wasn’t great, but we went on a couple of runs in the first half that really helped build that lead. Late first quarter and into the second, we played really well for a stretch. Created some turnovers, scored some points in transition, which is what we try to do."

Austin Kasyjanski led Bedford with 22 points, including a pair of 3-pointers, and Luke Soden added 19 points, also with two 3s. Brady O'Connell chipped in 12 points and Thomas Braga was also in double figures with 10 markers.

David Roy had 15 points for Merrimack, nine of those coming on three 3-pointers to open the second half. But no one else was in double figures for the Tomahawks, as Jenson Monroe scored all eight of his points in the first half and Drew McCarthy finished with seven.

"I think the second quarter killed us," Merrimack coach Austin Denton said. "First quarter, they came in and played hard, and I even thought the second half, I was happy. They were still playing hard, no one quit. We’ve still got to make shots. I think in the second quarter we scored seven points. (Bedford) hit shots. It swung quickly."

Merrimack took the lead early, going up 4-0 to start with the opportunity for more, as Bedford missed some shots and was unable to generate turnovers. But while the Bulldogs were struggling on offense, so were the Tomahawks.

A jumper by Monroe gave Merrimack a 10-7 lead but Braga answered with a second-chance basket, starting Bedford on a 12-2 run to end the quarter. That carried into the second, with the Bulldog scoring the first seven points to make it a 19-2 run and a 26-12 lead.

With its full-court pressure ineffective early, Bedford focused on its halfcourt defense, and in the second quarter, forced nine Merrimack turnovers to go with seven points allowed.

"We got away from the press," Moreno said. "It wasn’t working, it wasn’t on (Tuesday). We decided to just get after it in the half court, which we’ve been working on in practice a lot. That helped us. We were trying to jump some screens, keep guys to one side, cause some turnovers, and that worked for us."

Every time the Tomahawks did score, it seemed the Bulldogs would answer with two or three baskets of their own.

"We broke down a bunch of times defensively in the second quarter, which hurt us," Denton said. "We talk about our assignments and we broke down. But overall, I like the fight. These guys came out (in the second half) and kept fighting. I’m not happy with the outcome, but I’m happy with how those guys kept fighting."

Roy hit three 3-pointers in the first two-plus minutes of the half, but Bedford was able to keep pace, making it an 18-point game early in the third quarter.

Merrimack got the lead down to 15 points on back-to-back baskets by Nathan Johnson and Zachariah Rezaoui with under a minute to play in the third. But a 3 by Soden and a basket by O'Connell in the final 30 seconds made it 58-38 going to the fourth.

"We come out at halftime and they end up hitting a couple of shots and get some momentum," Moreno said. "Just what we don’t want. Our guys responded pretty well, which was good. They come to battle."

Both teams are back in action on Friday. Merrimack will host Concord at 6:30 p.m. while Bedford goes to Derry for a rematch of last year's D1 championship game against Pinkerton (13-1) at 6 p.m.

"Everyone says it could be a big trap game," Moreno said of Tuesday's game. "We just wanted to survive through it and get it behind us. Now we can start talking about Friday night."