Published in the December 17, 2018 edition.
By DAN PAWLOWSKI
WAKEFIELD — For the first five minutes, it felt more like the Beebe Library than the Charbonneau Field House.
Getting the silent treatment from a routinely rowdy Red Sea is strange enough. It was even more curious considering what the Wakefield boys’ basketball team was doing to Watertown, the reigning Div. 3 state champion.
The Warriors jumped all over Watertown to a 9-2 lead. Captain Aidan Cusack had four points off great back-door passes from Billy O’Keefe and captain Ryan Marcus; O’Keefe hit a corner three and his brother Michael had a strong drive and finish; the Warriors were committed to the defensive end, communicating, helping and finishing possessions with strong rebounding; old friend and Wakefield Hall of Famer Steve Harrington (WHS ‘88) called a timeout to stop the rush; all of this, and still not so much as a single fist pump from a sitting student section that was packed to the brim.
Then, senior Pat Hannigan got the first two of his game-high 21 points off another great feed from Marcus and low tide turned into a tsunami.
An explosion of cheers, then a roaring “Let’s go Wakefield!” chant preceded a rejection by Marcus on Watertown’s star point guard Gabe Spinelli, and the message was sent: The Warriors were winning tonight.
“Somewhere on that run, I was thinking ‘that’s kind of odd they’re being so quiet,’ then of course when Pat scored that bucket they all erupted, but that’s great they’re having fun,” said head coach Brad Simpson. “It was really great to see that and the kids love it. That’s what it’s all about.”
The Warriors came back down to earth in the second as Spinelli dropped 14 of his 20 points in the quarter and Wakefield’s offense went from a modest three turnovers in the first to a rushed nine in the second as Watertown turned a 14-4 deficit after one quarter to a 28-26 deficit at the half.
Simpson’s halftime adjustments confounded his former star player (Harrington was a senior on Simpson’s first Wakefield team during the 1987-88 season) as Wakefield won the third quarter 20-6 and took a commanding 48-32 lead that they wouldn’t relinquish.
The main focus of the halftime conversations revolved around how to stop Spinelli and a suggestion from assistant coach Bryan Sweeney ended up being a quick consensus amongst the team.
“Bryan Sweeney suggested a box-and-one, Michael O’Keefe agreed and Billy O’Keefe said ‘box-and-one, Michael will cover him,’” said Simpson.
Knowing full well he’d have his brother to answer to, Michael O’Keefe shut down Spinelli for the rest of the game, limiting him to just four free throws for the last 16 minutes.
The third quarter started with Marcus getting aggressive as the captain found plenty of driving lanes, including a big and-one to give the home team a 39-28 lead.
Then the Patrick Hannigan show got started.
Always a bit of a spark plug on the floor, Hannigan has a reputation of knowing when to turn it on for the Warriors. He scored 12 in the third quarter including two 3’s and an and-one that boosted the Field House to another planet. Most shooters want silence at the stripe, but after the bucket and high fives all around, Hannigan waved on the Red Sea as he stood at the line and dared them to get even louder. They did. He hit the free throw anyway.
“He loves that stuff,” said Simpson of Hannigan feeding off the crowd. “He’s just a silent killer. You don’t notice him then he’s going to the basket, getting fouled and making his free throws.”
In the end, it was difficult to decide what was most impressive. The defense, the ball movement, the cohesiveness and support, a fully engaged bench. It was all good for Wakefield as they moved on to a 2-0 record.
The Warriors had four players in double figures. In addition to Hannigan, Marcus finished with 17 including two 3-pointers and three and-ones, Aidan Cusack, who shook off a chipped tooth and came right back, had 12 and Billy O’Keefe, in addition to plenty of assists and rebounds, added 10 points including three 3’s.
“Against the defending state champion, that’s a huge win,” said Simpson, who stresses that when this team plays together and commits to the defensive end, they can be great. “Right now, things are going well. We’’ll find out when we have a little adversity, but right now, the team is really coming together. That’s my biggest takeaway from the first three weeks of the season.”
The Warriors will try to keep it going on the road as both of their games this week are away. Wakefield plays a talented Lexington (1-0) team on Tuesday night before traveling to Wilmington on Friday night.
