Manchester West boys basketball runs past Souhegan late to win D2 quarterfinal (video)

MANCHESTER - There was one thing the Manchester West High School boys basketball team hadn't done all year and that was lose a game on its home court.

The Blue Knights weren't going to let it happen in their final game there this season.

No. 3 West broke open a close game early in the fourth quarter, getting a couple of 3-pointers to go with solid defense, as the Blue Knights knocked off No. 11 Souhegan 48-38 in the Division II quarterfinals on Saturday.

West (16-4) moves on the semifinals for the first time since 2016, where it will face No. 2 Pelham, which held off No. 7 Bow, 44-43, at 5:30 p.m. Monday at the Rochester Rec. Center.

“We haven’t lost here all year,” West coach Rich Otis said. “We played fantastic defensive, and all over the place. We held them to 38 points, and we knew it was going to be a grind. Even with an eight-point lead with about a minute-and-a-half left, I was still kind of scared. But out kids played fantastic.

“It’s been a while. It’s just great for the West community, the kids, the school, the administration. It’s just great for us to get to the final four.”

Max Houde led West with 17 points, 12 of which came in the second half after he rolled an ankle in the first half, while Amara Freeman added 15 points. The pair combined to hit eight of the team's nine 3-pointers, five of which came late in the third quarter and early in the fourth.

“I’m really proud of my guys,” Souhegan coach Peter Pierce said. “It was two (points) at halftime, it was two at the end of three, and we just ran out of gas. We didn’t shoot the ball well in the fourth quarter.

“We knew that we had to have great closeouts to beat them, and I thought for three quarters, we were fine. But once they hit a couple, it doesn’t take long to be down six or down nine.”

Weston Hickman did his best to keep the Sabers in it, scoring seven of his team-high 15 points in the fourth quarter. But no one else was in double figures for Souhegan, as Matt Nowak had six points and Joe Mayo scored five.

Souhegan jumped out to an early 6-2 lead, but West ended the first quarter with a 7-0 run to take a 9-6 lead and never trailed the rest of the way. The Blue Knights couldn't get much separation on the scoreboard in the first half, going up 20-14 with 2:42 left in the half, only to see the Sabers score five of the final six points of the quarter to make it 21-19 at halftime.

The game was tied three times in the first part of the third quarter, but back-to-back 3s by Houde and Freeman made it 31-25 Blue Knights with 3:25 to go until the fourth.

But West wouldn't score again in the quarter, with the Sabers getting baskets by Evan Bernasconi and Jon Bausha cutting the lead back to two, 31-29, going into the final eight minutes.

Freeman opened the fourth by hitting one of two free throws, but momentum started to swing when Jayden Guzman stole an inbounds pass near midcourt and raced to the other end for a layup. Freeman followed with a 3, and after a basket by Hickman, Houde drilled a 3 to make it 40-31 and force Souhegan to take a timeout with 5:20 to play.

“We hit big shots, defended well, rebounded well, shared the ball well,” Otis said. “Credit to Souhegan, they played fantastic as well. We just hit a few more shots than they did.”

Hickman scored for Souhegan, but Houde hit another 3 to give West its biggest lead to that point, 43-33, with 4:25 remaining.

“We were getting later and later in the game, and the closeouts were getting less and less,” Pierce said. “That’s what it was. The game plan was good. We just ran out of juice and didn’t have enough offense on the floor.”