Nashua North boys basketball overcomes slow start to oust Londonderry (video)

NASHUA - The Nashua High School North boys basketball team looked to be on the verge of making it a quick night.

But then Londonderry hit a couple of shots, the Titans missed a couple, and North coach Steve Lane thought his team might have to grind out a playoff win.

Instead, third-seeded North got it going again to start the second quarter, and this time made it hold up, racing past No. 14 Londonderry to take a 23-point lead into halftime on the way to an 83-46 win Wednesday night in the Division I preliminary round.

The Titans (18-1) now move on to the quarterfinals on Saturday, where they will host No. 6 Exeter in a rematch of last year's second-round game, won by North. The Blue Hawks knocked out No. 11 Goffstown, 71-54, in the first round on Wednesday.

"A little disappointed with the way we came out in the first quarter, but for some of the kids, this is the first tournament game," Lane said. "We gave up a couple bunnies and a 3, the momentum kind of switched, and I thought ‘oh boy, this is going to be a tough one.' Defensively, that’s where we hang our hat and Jayden Montgomery is the catalyst of that. It was fun to watch."

Montgomery, and fellow seniors Jack Peters and Jack Sullivan, led the way on defense, as North opened the second quarter with a 13-4 run to turn an eight-point lead into a 29-13 advantage, forcing a Londonderry (6-13) timeout. The Titans kept pouring it on after that and led 44-21 going into halftime.

Sullivan dropped in a game-high 16 points, while Peters and Robinson Rodriguez each added 15 points. Montgomery was also in double figures with 11 points, helping spread the ball around for North, which is missing leading-scorer Trevor Labrecque.

"Now more than ever, we all need to come together, start scoring more, playing as a team," Montgomery said. "Everyone is getting the ball, everyone is finishing, and we’re just playing good."

Lane wasn't surprised to see the balanced scoring and he knows where it starts.

"They don’t care who scores," the coach said. "They don’t care who gets the stop. As long as they all do it together, it’s kind of cliché, but it’s so true with this group of kids. Jayden is the catalyst."

Montgomery got the scoring started in the second quarter, hitting a 3 to give North a 19-8 lead. After a basket by Londonderry's Trevor Edmunds, Parth Miglani hit a 3, and after getting a steal in transition, Peters went in for a basket.

North outscored Londonderry 28-13 in the quarter, hitting four 3-pointers, to put the game out of reach going into the half.

"It was Jack Peters and Jack Sullivan, those two kids were really good (Wednesday)," Lane said. "The other two seniors really stepped up. They were both aggressive, they were both active on both ends. Big buckets when we needed them in the first and second quarters, and then I thought the second and third quarters were outstanding defensively."

As a team, the Titans were able to pick up their energy going into the second quarter as well.

"We didn’t have enough energy and as soon as we started picking it up," Montgomery said. "Without Trevor, we’re slowly getting into it, but I think we’re ready now. We’ll just keep it going.

"Our game plan is to push the pace, make it a fast-paced game, even if they’re getting it down the court, breaking the press. We want to move it, we push the ball fast on offense. If we control the pace, we control the entire game."

Kevin Rourke led Londonderry with 11 points while Mason Paquette had 10 and Edmunds added eight.