D1 Semi-Finals

North v. Pinkerton- First and foremost. . . Congrats to Coach Lane and the boys at Nashua North. We all knew that they were better than their record, but to make the final four is truly remarkable. Coach Lane is one of the most under-rated coaches in the state and the job he has done with his boys this season is remarkable. UNH is where the bell strikes midnight for Cinderella though. . . Pinkerton has everything necessary to win a championship this year. As long as they can keep playing unselfish basketball and feed Faulks early and often they should be able to get past North.

Spaulding v. Londonderry- The toughest game of the tournament was last Saturday for Londonderry. Merrimack exposed weaknesses in the Lancer's Armor, but is Spaulding going to be able to take advantage of those weakness. Ball has proven he is the best offensive threat in the state night in and night out. Ball with his supporting cast of Coleman and Corey are able to score in bunches. The only chance Spaulding has is to keep the game in the 40's and execute offensive possessions for minutes at a time. Keeping Londonderry to 30 possessions is the only way to stop them from scoring. If you can limit their possession and make Londonderry value possessions you may have a shot of winning. It will be a great game, in my opinion though I think Londonderry wins.

If I am correct then we will have a rivalry game for the championship. . . Londonderry v. Pinkerton.

But.... NH12345: You need Spaulding to win to keep your Bracket alive

I know I need Spaulding, but I think the Lancers will end up taking it. It would also be their first championship appearance in program history.

Even if I lose the bracket challenge I will still let you buy me drinks at the Jade!

That's funny because if Tulliver wins the Bracket Ship, I'm trying to convince the to buy me dinner at Billy's.

I find it amazing there seems to be momentum building for how North matches up nicely with Pinkerton and how the Titans seem to be the Sexy pick in this game. This semi-final match-up is eerily similar to the #1 Central v #12 Memorial double OT semi from last year. When those 2 teams played during the regular season Central dismantled Memorial by about 40+. The Crusaders were missing some players in that regular season game. Of course we now know of the Epic game in the semis where Memorial came within a whisker of handing Central their only loss of the season. One year later we have a #3 seed vs a #15 seed and in the regular season game North was dismantled by Pinkerton to the tune of 49 points. The Titans were missing a key player in that game also.

Will the blue and black Cinderella slipper fit for one more game? Well, that's what makes this game so fascinating. I'm not picking a winner. I just want to enjoy the festivities tonight. I went 4 - 0 with my quarterfinal picks. I'm happy.

I'm torn in the Lond v Spaulding nightcap. My head says Lancers but the Red Raiders carry the same color as my heart. The last few years my heart has rooted for Spaulding in Durham. The mind has always won out. To me Tim Cronin is very similar to Jack Ford with his Winny teams of the 80s and 90s. Both coaches have suffered heartbreak on the cruel Lundholm court. Ford finally got his title in 1992 when Winny beat Keene 48 to 43. Lond is looking to become the 2nd team in a row to run the regular and playoff season table.

My head and my heart will wage another basketball soul battle tonight between 7:30 and 9;00 pm.

North gave Pinkerton all they could handle tonight. Cinderella left the dance with his head held high. Pinkerton took quite a punch from the Titans, especially in the last 4 minutes or so of the 2nd period when North went on an 18 to 0 run to go into the locker room sky high with momentum. Pinkerton showed great resiliency in mounting a 2nd half comeback.

Both Lond and Spaulding showed great heart in a close battle in the 2nd semi-final. Lond leaned on their leaders when it counted most with the game in the balance. Another disappointment for the Red Raiders on the Lundholm court.

This sets up a marquee showdown with neighborly rivals Londonderry and Pinkerton this Saturday at 3:00 pm. The Lundholm Gym will be like a packed can of sardines. There will be a huge student body for each team. When they played in the regular season it was a scintillating game. I expect the same from the Ship.