Rice head coach Paul Pecor and Mt. Mansfield head coach Jeff Davis both agreed months ago they each had a tough exciting game to start the 2011 basketball season heading into Tuesday night—versus each other.
The two boys basketball coaches, who are best of friends, knew what they were talking about as Tuesday’s contest proved to be competitive. Yet, Mt. Mansfield clearly came out looking sharper and ready to make another run this year.
The Cougars used a 16-7 fourth quarter advantage to beat Rice 45-32 Tuesday night in the season opener for both teams. The two teams each appeared in the semifinal round of Division I boys basketball tournament last year, with Rice winning the D-I title.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Final | |
| Rice | 8 | 5 | 12 | 7 | 32 |
| Mt. Mansfield | 9 | 14 | 6 | 16 | 45 |
While Rice took home the hardware last spring, MMU’s players had a sour taste left in their mouth from their semifinal loss to Rutland. With a core group of seniors returning for their final year, Tuesday was their chance to start off on the right foot against the defending champs.
“We’re seniors and we knew we had to act like it,” said Mt. Mansfield forward Tom Lacy. “Last year we came out in the second half at times and let games slip a little bit. We’re mature this year and we’ve been through this before.”
MMU scored the first nine points of the contest and never trailed. The 32 points scored by Rice marks their lowest point total in over a year and a half. The Green Knights averaged 60 points per game last season.
“I couldn’t be happier with how we played defensively,” said Davis. “They [Rice] are so big. I honestly have never seen Lacy play that hard on defense. Suder came alive tonight—he played terrific. Pochop and Sharrow made a difference on defense. We did a good job moving the ball. Overall I am real pleased in our game.”
Senior Cody Sharrow led all scorers with 13 points and added nine rebounds for Mt. Mansfield (1-0). Eric Suder added 12 points and seven rebounds for the Cougars. Lacy finished with nine points to go along with a team-high five assists.
Lacy scored eight of his points in the opening half, including two threes, and played lockdown defense. Injuries hampered Lacy during his junior year but he played through the pain.
“Last year I had a lot of trouble with injuries,” said Lacy, who battled through a knee injury last season. “I have worked really hard in the offseason to get my legs in good shape. It felt good to stay in front of my guy on defense and elevate my shot—things that I definitely notice a difference in from last year.”
Rice (0-1) was led by junior Will Conroy’s eight points. Casey Tipson added six points while Jake Maynard scored five points for the Green Knights.
“I thought they absolutely outworked us,” said Rice head coach Paul Pecor. “They took it to us on the backboards and got to loose balls. Trust me, we are going to pick up the intensity in practice.”
Mt. Mansfield travels to Brattleboro Saturday for their next game. Rice is at home Friday night to take on Spaulding.
Photos by Paul Lamontagne/vtsportsimages.com
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- Rice’s Marcus Willingham will help defend MMU’s Tom Lacy when the two teams meet tonight.
