They Called Game
There was a LOT of action last night.
In the Game of the Day, the Oxford Hills and Portland boys battled for the pole position in AA North. Portland led most of the way, but Oxford Hills rallied late in a thriller.
Oxford Hills holds on, 48-47. Cole Pulkkinen leads the way with 12 points for the Vikings, Teigan Pelleiter and Eli Soehren with 9 apiece. Kevin Rugabirwa and Brady Toher 10 points each for the Bulldogs
— Greg Levinsky (@GregLevinsky) January 4, 2023
Gee, where have I seen that before?
This should put Oxford Hills in the driver's seat for AA North, but we'll know for sure when the Tourney Odds finish calculating.
From all accounts it was a great game. Sadly, there was no stream, but I guess it's unfair to expect a stream when the game is in such a remote location like [checks notes] the Portland Expo.
Also in AA, the Noble boys stunned Gorham in overtime, beating the Rams for the first time in, well, in the 5 class era, for sure.
Then things got a little crazy around the state...
Trailing 45-44 in Caribou, Georganna Curtis with the game winner off the glass for Presque Isle!
Thanks to WHOU for the video. They do a fantastic job of covering northern Maine and the day we get rid of NFHS forever in favor of WHOU will be a banner day for Maine high school basketball.
Not to be outdone, Dane Zawistowski's buzzer-beater at home lifted Lawrence over Nokomis.
Meanwhile, at the beach...
OOB girls up 40-13 at the half over SV. A huge Congratulations to Elise MacNair on scoring her 1000 career point with a 28 point first half effort. Congratulations on a huge accomplishment. Go Beach. @OOBathletics @MEBBallRankings @Supt_Prin_OOB
— Heath Floyd (@HFgullspride) January 3, 2023
Pier fries for everyone!
Oh and Nate Hebert just casually knocked down 9 3's for GNG.
Hebert's monster night carries Gray-NG past Fryeburg. @GNG_AD pic.twitter.com/NgIA8BSNGE
— Travis Lee (@TLee_WMTW) January 4, 2023
To no one's surprise, a full slate of games gave us some great moments.
We head to the MVC for a girls game between two teams that have just been crushing their competition.
Zach Keene's Phoenix are 6-0 and in the mix for one of the top seeds in B South. They're the second most dominant team in the state (Kents Hill), with a nearly flawless %Perfect. They're probably a missed FGA against Mountain Valley from being 100%. They're also one of the 9 teams left in the state that are undefeated both on the floor and Against the Spread.
However, that MVC schedule isn't doing them any favors. The best team they've faced in a countable game is #42 Carrabec.
They'll take on a Winthrop team that's similarly laying waste to the competition. The Magic School Buses are 7-1, with that 1 loss coming to Carrabec. They're 9th in the state in scoring differential, but they've played a slightly weaker schedule than Spruce.
Honestly, I think the Model's kind of low here. It can struggle with teams that haven't been tested because, well, you can't really know how good a team is until they've been tested. The Phoenix have done everything they can with the schedule they've been given. We'll see if that holds tonight.
The rest of the games are after the jump.