Class I Boys Tournament Thread
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tarrier
chicagokid43
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Class I Boys Tournament Thread
Posted on NHIAA.org today.
1. Milford
16. Merrimack Valley
8. Hanover
9. John Stark
4. Portsmouth
13. Souhegan
5. Lebanon
12. Bedford
2. Pembroke
15. Coe-Brown
7. Bow
10. Pelham
3. Oyster River
14. Hollis/Brookline
6. Kearsarge
11. Kingswood
1. Milford
16. Merrimack Valley
8. Hanover
9. John Stark
4. Portsmouth
13. Souhegan
5. Lebanon
12. Bedford
2. Pembroke
15. Coe-Brown
7. Bow
10. Pelham
3. Oyster River
14. Hollis/Brookline
6. Kearsarge
11. Kingswood
Re: Class I Boys Tournament Thread
Some interesting matchups in the first round in Class I, not as many as in L, but still some good games.
4 Portsmouth vs. 13 Souhegan - Portsmouth is probably the team that has overachieved the most this season, but I wouldn't tell that to Coach John Mulvey. They've beat the top 3 seeds in Milford, Pembroke and Oyster River, but lost to Souhegan WAY back on December 18th 71-63. Souhegan's not exactly on a hot streak losing 5 of their last 7, but those 5 losses were vs. Oyster River, Milford, Pelham, Hollis/Brookline and Bedford, pretty good group of Class I teams. Souhegan will lean on Devin Gilligan and Seth Cordts to match the scoring combo of Mike Barton and Kyle Dicesare in what should be a really good game.
5 Lebanon vs. 12 Bedford - Tough matchup for Lebanon as they get a solid Bedford team that started real hot out of the gate gaining wins vs. Portsmouth, Hollis-Brookline and Class L's Goffstown en route to a 8-2 start. One of those losses was to their Tuesday night opponent Lebanon on the road 54-39. Lebanon has had a very solid season except for a blowout by Pembroke early, they've held their own against Class I's top competition. Look for Bedford to pound the ball inside and rebound the ball effectively in what could be a upset in the making.
7 Bow vs. 10 Pelham - I haven't seen either of these teams this year but don't sleep on Pelham. They're getting better from what I hear every day - and it doesn't hurt they have Class I's leading scorer in Steve Spirou at just under 22 pts/game. Bow had a tough stretch in February where they lost 5 in a row but got 3 straight wins to end the season. These two squads didn't meet in the regular season but Pelham Coach Todd Kress has his kids playing really well giving up just 44 points a game over the last 6 games while going 5-1 over that stretch (their only loss was to #2 Oyster River). Just like the NCAA tourney, that 10 seed is always a dangerous team.
6 Kearsarge vs. 11 Kingswood - Well this is the Heal system at it's best. Kingswood finishes with the 7th best record in Class I, and aren't even going to have an opportunity to host even 1 home game. A team that finished 12-6 (Kingswood) has to go no the road to face Kearsarge who finished 11-7. Hmm. There's definitely some players, coaches parents and fans in Wolfeboro tonight shaking their head at the way this has played out. And it's not like Kingswood didn't have any quality wins this year, I mean they beat Hollis/Brookline, Portsmouth and Bedford. Regardless, Kearsarge gets the nod in seedings and home court advantage - I don't know enough about these teams to pick a winner, but I do know Dylan Lovering and Kevin Smithwood combine for almost 30 a game, so if Kearsarge is going to avoid an "upset" they might want to start there.
4 Portsmouth vs. 13 Souhegan - Portsmouth is probably the team that has overachieved the most this season, but I wouldn't tell that to Coach John Mulvey. They've beat the top 3 seeds in Milford, Pembroke and Oyster River, but lost to Souhegan WAY back on December 18th 71-63. Souhegan's not exactly on a hot streak losing 5 of their last 7, but those 5 losses were vs. Oyster River, Milford, Pelham, Hollis/Brookline and Bedford, pretty good group of Class I teams. Souhegan will lean on Devin Gilligan and Seth Cordts to match the scoring combo of Mike Barton and Kyle Dicesare in what should be a really good game.
5 Lebanon vs. 12 Bedford - Tough matchup for Lebanon as they get a solid Bedford team that started real hot out of the gate gaining wins vs. Portsmouth, Hollis-Brookline and Class L's Goffstown en route to a 8-2 start. One of those losses was to their Tuesday night opponent Lebanon on the road 54-39. Lebanon has had a very solid season except for a blowout by Pembroke early, they've held their own against Class I's top competition. Look for Bedford to pound the ball inside and rebound the ball effectively in what could be a upset in the making.
7 Bow vs. 10 Pelham - I haven't seen either of these teams this year but don't sleep on Pelham. They're getting better from what I hear every day - and it doesn't hurt they have Class I's leading scorer in Steve Spirou at just under 22 pts/game. Bow had a tough stretch in February where they lost 5 in a row but got 3 straight wins to end the season. These two squads didn't meet in the regular season but Pelham Coach Todd Kress has his kids playing really well giving up just 44 points a game over the last 6 games while going 5-1 over that stretch (their only loss was to #2 Oyster River). Just like the NCAA tourney, that 10 seed is always a dangerous team.
6 Kearsarge vs. 11 Kingswood - Well this is the Heal system at it's best. Kingswood finishes with the 7th best record in Class I, and aren't even going to have an opportunity to host even 1 home game. A team that finished 12-6 (Kingswood) has to go no the road to face Kearsarge who finished 11-7. Hmm. There's definitely some players, coaches parents and fans in Wolfeboro tonight shaking their head at the way this has played out. And it's not like Kingswood didn't have any quality wins this year, I mean they beat Hollis/Brookline, Portsmouth and Bedford. Regardless, Kearsarge gets the nod in seedings and home court advantage - I don't know enough about these teams to pick a winner, but I do know Dylan Lovering and Kevin Smithwood combine for almost 30 a game, so if Kearsarge is going to avoid an "upset" they might want to start there.
Re: Class I Boys Tournament Thread
The NH High School Sports Blog has a nice write up on Hollis-Brookline and the things they did to turn their season around and earn a tournament spot despite a tough start to their season:
Surprise, surprise: H/B boys will get a taste of the playoffs
Surprise, surprise: H/B boys will get a taste of the playoffs
Class I Boys Round 1
Milford
Merrimack Valley
Game Notes: I see Milford winning this one going away. Milford has gotten better against zones as of late and their fast break style should be too much for MV. Milford advances
Hanover
John Stark Regional
Game Notes: This is a tough game for me to call. Stark seems to be playing better over the second half but I do not think they will be able to stay in front of the Hanover guards. Hanover wins this but only by about 8-10
Lebanon
Bedford
Game Notes: Once again a tough game to call. Lebanon won at home early in the year but Bedford's coaching staff will keep his team close. I think it will come down to rebounds and Lebanon will hold on to win in a tough battle.
Portsmouth
Souhegan
Game Notes: I hate picking this one. The Souhegan team had some nice early wins and I really thought they would be a final eight team this year but getting Portsmouth in the first round changes that. Portsmouth is a top 4-5 team and will win at home.
Oyster River
Hollis/Brookline
Game Notes: As much as I would love to see Mike Soucy pull off this upset I cannot see this happening. I seen OR last week against Kingswood and was very impressed with how they are playing.
Kearsarge Regional
Kingswood Regional
Game Notes: Unfortunately I did not see Kearsarge play this year. The only class I team I did not see. I am going to give this win to Kingswood but I do it blindly.
Bow
Pelham
Game Notes: So who guards Poitras for Pelham? Who guards Spirou for Bow? I think Spirou will get his 20 but for some reason I feel that the size of Poitras and the guards for Bow will be able to play slow and get a win. Real interesting matchup that I would pay to see.
Pembroke
Coe-Brown Northwood
Game Notes: I seen this game early and the year and was shocked that Coe Brown was within 6 in the 4th quarter. I cannot see that happening again. Pembroke easily.
So there you have it, my look at class I.
Merrimack Valley
Game Notes: I see Milford winning this one going away. Milford has gotten better against zones as of late and their fast break style should be too much for MV. Milford advances
Hanover
John Stark Regional
Game Notes: This is a tough game for me to call. Stark seems to be playing better over the second half but I do not think they will be able to stay in front of the Hanover guards. Hanover wins this but only by about 8-10
Lebanon
Bedford
Game Notes: Once again a tough game to call. Lebanon won at home early in the year but Bedford's coaching staff will keep his team close. I think it will come down to rebounds and Lebanon will hold on to win in a tough battle.
Portsmouth
Souhegan
Game Notes: I hate picking this one. The Souhegan team had some nice early wins and I really thought they would be a final eight team this year but getting Portsmouth in the first round changes that. Portsmouth is a top 4-5 team and will win at home.
Oyster River
Hollis/Brookline
Game Notes: As much as I would love to see Mike Soucy pull off this upset I cannot see this happening. I seen OR last week against Kingswood and was very impressed with how they are playing.
Kearsarge Regional
Kingswood Regional
Game Notes: Unfortunately I did not see Kearsarge play this year. The only class I team I did not see. I am going to give this win to Kingswood but I do it blindly.
Bow
Pelham
Game Notes: So who guards Poitras for Pelham? Who guards Spirou for Bow? I think Spirou will get his 20 but for some reason I feel that the size of Poitras and the guards for Bow will be able to play slow and get a win. Real interesting matchup that I would pay to see.
Pembroke
Coe-Brown Northwood
Game Notes: I seen this game early and the year and was shocked that Coe Brown was within 6 in the 4th quarter. I cannot see that happening again. Pembroke easily.
So there you have it, my look at class I.
chicagokid43- Player of the Year
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Bow vs. Pelham
ChiKid,
I'm off to Bow tonight to see them take on Pelham. I haven't seen the Falcons, but have seen Pelham play twice(vs. your Spartans in Milford and @ home against OR). They looked awful against the Bobcats, but played well against Milford. I will provide a post game report later on...
I'm off to Bow tonight to see them take on Pelham. I haven't seen the Falcons, but have seen Pelham play twice(vs. your Spartans in Milford and @ home against OR). They looked awful against the Bobcats, but played well against Milford. I will provide a post game report later on...
tarrier- All-State
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Good to hear.
Good to hear someone is covering this game. I think this will be one of the more competitive games this evening. Should be a battle and I look forward to your analysis.
chicagokid43- Player of the Year
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Re: Class I Boys Tournament Thread
Milford won 71-55. Mike O came out on fire scoring 16 of Milfords 18 pts, it look like the game was going to be over espicially after he got a quick dunk and got the crowd going, but other than O'loughlin the rest of the team struggled for the most part. O'loughlin finished with 22 but only took 3 shots in the 2nd half, I think Milford should've went to him a lot more its not like he was being locked down in the 2nd half he was open a lot just his touches were limited. But back to the first quarter I'm pretty sure the score was 20-11. The 2nd quarter Milford got it going a little more on offense and went into half with like a 17 pt lead i believe. I thought Cressy played well in the first half controlling the boards creating his shot and for the most part shutting down kyle nelson who had been playing really well as of late. #10 i thought throughout the game played well playing the point for mv creating shots for people getting some penetration and really frustrating mitchell. As far as the officials no complaints in the first half, let them play a physical game.
The 3rd quarter Milford kept a steady 15 pt lead occasionally get it up to 20 and Mv would come close to cutting into 10. MV really struggled this quarter finishing inside, from deep and espicially from the line. The officials...well completely opposite from the first half as they we're calling touch fouls, and 1 time Mike O was waiting for the ref to hand him the ball and the ref placed the ball on the ground and began his count I thought this was very wierd and nothing a ref should have ever done Mike was waiting for it...not like no 1 was their but i thought the officiating this half was very poor, not just towards Milford equally to MV. MV continued to keep Mitchell on lock for the most part had him very rattled and frustrated I thought out of frustration he forced many shots and wasn't the floor general i'm used too. Holder played real well this quarter on defense as well as finishing and getting to the line, also threw down a nice dunk on the break.
The 4th quarter it got interesting. Milford was up 16 coming into this quarter but MV chipped away went back and forth but got it to 10 with 6:17 left, and MV comes down Cyr picks up his 5th foul, and said something to the official and was hit with a technical. If MV was going to take it they had a prime oppurtunity here with 4 freethrows and the ball back, but they missed all 4 free throws! This was a huge problem for them they went 6-19 in the 4th quarter alone and must have been like 12-30 atleast in the game. After this Milford and MV would go back and forth keeping it at a 10 pt difference but Milford was too much and extended until both benches were dumped. Cressy really struggled this half missing many freethrows layups and 3's, and didn't control nelson as much, 10 as I said continued to play well and i believe he was a soph. MV really shot themselves in the foot with the missed bunnies and freethrows they had a chance but with saying that Milford wasn't consistent at all and it was not a great game out of them...hoping they got it all out because John Stark is coming friday and they are a decent team with a real good coach, should be a pretty good game.
The 3rd quarter Milford kept a steady 15 pt lead occasionally get it up to 20 and Mv would come close to cutting into 10. MV really struggled this quarter finishing inside, from deep and espicially from the line. The officials...well completely opposite from the first half as they we're calling touch fouls, and 1 time Mike O was waiting for the ref to hand him the ball and the ref placed the ball on the ground and began his count I thought this was very wierd and nothing a ref should have ever done Mike was waiting for it...not like no 1 was their but i thought the officiating this half was very poor, not just towards Milford equally to MV. MV continued to keep Mitchell on lock for the most part had him very rattled and frustrated I thought out of frustration he forced many shots and wasn't the floor general i'm used too. Holder played real well this quarter on defense as well as finishing and getting to the line, also threw down a nice dunk on the break.
The 4th quarter it got interesting. Milford was up 16 coming into this quarter but MV chipped away went back and forth but got it to 10 with 6:17 left, and MV comes down Cyr picks up his 5th foul, and said something to the official and was hit with a technical. If MV was going to take it they had a prime oppurtunity here with 4 freethrows and the ball back, but they missed all 4 free throws! This was a huge problem for them they went 6-19 in the 4th quarter alone and must have been like 12-30 atleast in the game. After this Milford and MV would go back and forth keeping it at a 10 pt difference but Milford was too much and extended until both benches were dumped. Cressy really struggled this half missing many freethrows layups and 3's, and didn't control nelson as much, 10 as I said continued to play well and i believe he was a soph. MV really shot themselves in the foot with the missed bunnies and freethrows they had a chance but with saying that Milford wasn't consistent at all and it was not a great game out of them...hoping they got it all out because John Stark is coming friday and they are a decent team with a real good coach, should be a pretty good game.
Guest- Guest
Re: Class I Boys Tournament Thread
Nice write-up, Bigman. I'm interested to see how Milford plays over the next week and a half. They have been the the most talked about and overwhelming favorite this side of BG...so how they handle the pressure of being the team to beat round-to-round will be a fascinating watch.
carp24- Junior Varsity
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Join date : 2010-03-06
Today was the culmination of a year of being ignored by the coaching staff.
BIGMAN44, what did you think of the turnovers that were caused by the floor at MIlford? It was quite apparent that Milfords quickness was not as affective as it has been in the past because the quickest move was often followed by a player traveling or slipping? I thought this evened the game athletically.
chicagokid43- Player of the Year
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Re: Class I Boys Tournament Thread
Chi-kid I agree the floor is god awful, It has been even back when I played, but even when they do fix it it still gets ruined. This is the result of having gym class in the gym not a mini gym, and even if you do have it in the regular gym you must force the students to change their shoes, they also allow students to hang out in the gym after school coming from outside and back in which really ruins it, but it was a huge factor in the game in slowed down milford and it also caused many turnovers due to slipping and what not.
Guest- Guest
I did not see my son frustrated defensively
I did not see my son frustrated defensively at all. I did see him force shots and do too much offensively. It seems to be when teams play zone and we settle for threes that he does so. I think it is off of lack of movement that he feels he has to create and when a team is leaving their two bigs under the hoop it is not a good idea to drive the ball right at them. I was irate again at the lack of coaching for my son. I have been begging all year for our coach to discipline him when he gets out of control. I did have the discussion about getting the ball to the hot man which Mike O but I still feel there is a way to beat these lazy zones with interior screens and getting the ball to the middle of the floor with a pass. There is still something missing with this team. The do not make adjustments well,they do not stay disciplined when teams throw things at them and they seemed to take on the look of the coach on the bench very easy. The coach never looks confident in close games, he never shows confidence and he always seems to react to the other team instead of having the other team react to him. To me there is still many questions for this team to answer and tonight was one of them that while they survived it only brings up more questions.
chicagokid43- Player of the Year
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Re: Class I Boys Tournament Thread
I'm presuming the Milford gym floor won't be in any better shape for the quarterfinal game with John Stark this Friday?
Tuesday and Friday- Moderator
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Re: Class I Boys Tournament Thread
haha no the floor will be the same as it was all year... that's why I didn't touch on it. But Chi-kid as far coaching goes I know he def doesn't look comfortable in close games and I thought he made a few very odd subs in crucial times and he doesn't do enough coaching if players are struggling or forcing etc. from what I can see. I also thought at 1 time mikey did get frustrated i believe it was the 2nd quarter he got frustrated and started forcing and it seemed to bother him all game, but I'll end this one because every1 is entitled to their opinion and i'm not looking for an argument.
Guest- Guest
Not looking to argue, I will see it in the tape.
I know it was not one of his better games on the offensive end but I did not see the defensive stuff you seen but if it was there I will see it on the review. One thing nice about being the video guy is the ability to analyze the tape. The bad thing is you have to see the crappy games twice lol
No doubt my son played out of control on the offensive end but I will see more on the replay.
No doubt my son played out of control on the offensive end but I will see more on the replay.
chicagokid43- Player of the Year
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Re: Class I Boys Tournament Thread
ohhh my bad if I said defensively he struggled then my bad, I didn't mean to say that at all as far as his defense goes I thought he made up for his lack of offense on defense he played aggressive on d.
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Re: Class I Boys Tournament Thread
ChiKid, are you confident heading into the John Stark game?
Tuesday and Friday- Moderator
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Re: Class I Boys Tournament Thread
Does anyone know the results of the hb vs oyster river game??
Guest- Guest
Re: Class I Boys Tournament Thread
Oyster River won by a lot - like 25 or more
Tuesday and Friday- Moderator
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Not Confident at all
I am worried that this team is still searching for a consistent way to beat the zone.
chicagokid43- Player of the Year
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Well I just watched the game and..
Well here is what I seen after I watched the tape and cut the highlights like I do every night. Milford settled to many times for fast shots while they were up by 10+. There seems to be a need to win to fast with this team and that scares me. My son was partly to blame forcing what I thought was 4 shots that he should not have taken. Two were very aggressive shots going to the hoop with some contact the other two were pull ups that actually happened in the first half. I was more upset about the ones in the second half while we were up. However after watching the game I do not think that he played as bad as I thought. I hope he does not read this, lol
I did catch something that was not as apparent in the actual flow of the game. Mike O'Loughlin was catching the ball a step deeper than in the first half due to a switch of defenses in after halftime. He was forced to catch adn try to create and the dribble drive help was actually pretty affective at keeping him away from the hoop. He did cause some steals and the dunk alter in the half but Milford didn't get him enough touches to really be affective. They could have ran him off some screens and tried to force a switch that may have helped him attack better off the dribble.
Rebounding was an issue as well as there were at least 6 possessions that led to second chance points for the Pride.
Anyway, Milford did escape and the game was not as bad as I originally thought. However I am still concerned that Milford does not adjust well to defenses. Presses have not been a common theme either and MV was able to catch Milford off guard with a press that did cause a few turnovers at first but then got them 3 layups also. Milford has to recognize that and adjust quicker. Turnovers in a close game would have beaten them tonight.
I did catch something that was not as apparent in the actual flow of the game. Mike O'Loughlin was catching the ball a step deeper than in the first half due to a switch of defenses in after halftime. He was forced to catch adn try to create and the dribble drive help was actually pretty affective at keeping him away from the hoop. He did cause some steals and the dunk alter in the half but Milford didn't get him enough touches to really be affective. They could have ran him off some screens and tried to force a switch that may have helped him attack better off the dribble.
Rebounding was an issue as well as there were at least 6 possessions that led to second chance points for the Pride.
Anyway, Milford did escape and the game was not as bad as I originally thought. However I am still concerned that Milford does not adjust well to defenses. Presses have not been a common theme either and MV was able to catch Milford off guard with a press that did cause a few turnovers at first but then got them 3 layups also. Milford has to recognize that and adjust quicker. Turnovers in a close game would have beaten them tonight.
chicagokid43- Player of the Year
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Re: Class I Boys Tournament Thread
Kingswood and Bedford both won, minor upsets. I liked both teams but wasn't sure either would be able to pull an upset. Both teams earned trips to the seacoast where Kingswood will face Oyster River and Bedford will play Portsmouth. Both those 2nd round games are very interesting and I am willing to bet one of those games will be another upset.
Disappointed to see Pelham lost, I expected more out of them in the playoffs.
Disappointed to see Pelham lost, I expected more out of them in the playoffs.
Class I quarters
I'm heading to Pembroke Academy for tonight's quarterfinal clash between the #2 Spartans and the 7th ranked Bow Falcons. After Pembroke's 65-47 preliminary round win over Coe-Brown on Tuesday, Matt Alosa's team is now 17 and 2 and on a 14 game winning streak dating back to a January 12th home loss to Portsmouth. The only other game the Spartans have lost this year was a 50-40 setback at Bow on January 5th. The Falcons were only 9-9 in the regular season, but benefited from the use of the HEAL rating system in Class I. Bow beat #10 Pelham, 67-63 in the prelims on Tuesday. I'll have post a full recap on here after the game tonight.
tarrier- All-State
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Re: Class I Boys Tournament Thread
I'm off to Portsmouth/Bedford myself. Should be a low scoring battle. Looking forward to what Mulvey has in store for the Bedford bigmen.
Hmm Where should I go, I know... Milford
I will report back just the facts from the Milford gym. No opinions,none of my input on what I see. Only points and results. Yeah Right!
chicagokid43- Player of the Year
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Re: Class I Boys Tournament Thread
here's the write up on the Portsmouth/Bedford game. This was the best game I've seen all season...
http://www.nhsportspage.com/display_full_story.php?story_id=384
Portsmouth
Nate Jones 5/6 13
Billy Lane 0/2 2
Mike Montville 4/6 11
Kyle DiCesare 0/1 10
Riley McCarthy 0/2 2
Mike Barton 2/5 14
Charlie Dufrey 3/4 3
14/26 55
Bedford
Schlaffer 2
O'Brien 7/8 10
Olen 3
Maher 3/3 11
Weber 4/4 14
Marinelli 1/2 8
15/17 48
http://www.nhsportspage.com/display_full_story.php?story_id=384
Portsmouth
Nate Jones 5/6 13
Billy Lane 0/2 2
Mike Montville 4/6 11
Kyle DiCesare 0/1 10
Riley McCarthy 0/2 2
Mike Barton 2/5 14
Charlie Dufrey 3/4 3
14/26 55
Bedford
Schlaffer 2
O'Brien 7/8 10
Olen 3
Maher 3/3 11
Weber 4/4 14
Marinelli 1/2 8
15/17 48
Last edited by The Assistant on Sat Mar 13, 2010 10:01 am; edited 1 time in total
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