D2 - Semis Lebanon

Can't believe  they can't make the trip down, unfortunate.  

Who get's the advantage?  Who should win anyway?  Going to be an awesome 18 hours of basketball in NH!!

Can't wait

I think Portsmouth's defense is going to carry them to victory. They have a niche for frustrating shooters and ball handlers. Offensively Donovan Phanor has emerged as well as Joey Glynn. Phanor had a rough start after a stellar football season but he's now got his mid range and three ball going which gives Portsmouth another weapon. For Lebanon the play of KJ is going to kill or keep them in it. Portsmouth will try to take advantage of the game and keep the momentum early and force turnovers early. Should be a great game but I say Clippers win by 6. I think Pelham will upset Pembroke in the second game on a last possession shot.

Quite a raucous atmosphere at Exeter High tonight for the 2 Division 2 Boys Semifinal games. I came in at halftime of the Lebanon - Portsmouth game and there weren't many seats left in the gym. Portsmouth had a huge student body section, which is expected, but Lebanon had a good showing given the earlier game time and change of venue.

Offense was not the pro of this game. Neither team could go on any big run and the game was close throughout the 2nd half. Lebanon was up 35 to 31 in the 4th period and had 2 golden chances to go up by 6 with layups and missed both. This hurt the Raiders chances. The final 4 minutes of the game was played close to the vest with Lebanon losing their cool and having some technical assessed to them. Portsmouth took advantage of the Raiders loss of composure and secured the W.

Pembroke simply had too much W & W tonight as in Welch and Williams. The duo scored all 16 points for Pembroke as they had a 16 to 7 lead at the end of the first. The Spartans stretched the lead to 31 to 17 at halftime. W & W combined for 27 of the 31 points. Pelham had a scoring drought in the first 4 minutes of the 3rd and the game was essentially over.

Pat Welch will win the D2 POY, but I wouldn't be surprised if Kafani Williams finishes 2nd in the POY voting. He's been THAT GOOD this season. He's probably the most improved player in D2 this year. He's the best paint finisher in D2 and has a nice touch in the 3 to 8 foot area.

It will be a great matchup for the D2 Ship tomorrow. I'm sure Matt Alosa is very happy there will be a 3 man crew working the game. Portsmouth had a lot of incidental contact when they guarded Welch in their regular season victory over Pembroke. Some of the incidental contact was borderline fouling. The 3 man crew should be able to clean up this Portsmouth tactic tomorrow. The Portsmouth coaching staff will have to figure out another defensive scheme to hold Welch down.

Portsmouth will need to play better today. Pembroke is playing very well.

Boy those officials really did not like Lebanon, 2 very light fouls to start the game on Morrill. 20 seconds in their best player sits. Then they let people kill each other for 3 qtrs. Really a poorly officiated game. Portsmouth had to go to the line more than twice as many time as Lebanon. Give Clippers credit they defended, and kept their heads. When Mackey was out of the game Lebanon had a chance but when he came back he really demonstrated senior leadership. Lebanon had a few kids lose their cool in a tight game. Kalin Sou the shooter still looks hurt. Lebanon struggled all post season without him healthy. Tough way to end for Lebanon, they do play hard. Portsmouth the better team.

Pelham looked a little overwhelmed by the moment. They gained valuable experience. Can't believe they will be in D3 next year. Matt Regan does a great job.

As Matt Alosa said the two best teams are their in the end. Should be a great game. Most interested with what happens in the off season with the trials and tribulations of Pembroke. Oh well first the game

As far as the comment on the officiating goes....... The Portsmouth - Lebanon game was poorly played. Both teams shot poorly. Both teams were rough with the ball in taking care of it. Both teams were inefficient in their transition games. When officiating crews are working you expect to see some reasonable flow to a game. There was ZERO flow to this game outside of a 1 minute stretch mid-way through the 4th period. It was what it was. An ugly semifinal game played by two teams that could never kick it into playoff gear. Portsmouth survived this game.

As I stated before Lebanon had 2 great opportunities to go up by 6 in the 4th quarter with absolute bunnies and they missed both. This was HUGE. If Lebanon hits one or both of those bunnies then the Raiders go up by 6 or 8. In this closely and ugly played game this would've been a big lead and probably one Portsmouth would not have been able to come back from.