Granby shuts downs Ware to advance to WMass Division 4 boys basketball semifinals

GRANBY — A stifling defensive performance in the opening half led the second-seeded Granby boys basketball team to a 61-52 win over No. 7 Ware on Thursday in the quarterfinals of the Western Massachusetts Division 4 Tournament.

Seven first-half steals helped Granby open a 37-19 lead at halftime. The Indians went on a run late to put some pressure on the Rams, but a three-point play by Zach Gorham with just over a minute left in the game stretched the lead back to double digits for Granby.

“In the first half we came out and we played pretty well defensively, and they missed some shots early,” Rams coach Tim Sheehan said. “Second half they made shots and we made some ill-advised turnovers late in the game, but in the end I just feel like we made the right amount of plays to win the game.”

Added senior Noah Bleakley, “We played tough and defense win games. We strive on our defense and we run the floor good, so when we do that, we usually play good and win the game.”

Besides helping to keep the Indians off the scoreboard, Granby’s aggressive play on defense helped set the Rams up for easy baskets at the other end of the court.

“It helped a lot because then we pushed it up and got easy layups,” Bleakley said.

The Rams mixed up their defensive looks, employing a zone defense, man-to-man, and a press at different points throughout the night.

“We applied some pressure and it forced them into some mistakes that we kind of thought we could do,” Sheehan said.

Gorham, Granby’s leading scorer and rebounder, played the game under the weather. But the senior 1,000-point scorer still tied for a team-high with 15 points while hauling in six rebounds.

Gorham also limped off the court after a collision under the hoop in the fourth quarter, but he returned a few minutes later.

With Gorham playing at less than 100 percent, Bleakley felt he had to make up the difference.

“I had to step up definitely on the rebounding side. (Gorham) gets like 20 rebounds a game, so without him, it’s definitely tough to get rebounds as a team, so I had to step up,” Bleakley said.

Bleakley finished with a team-high 11 rebounds and 15 points. Joe Desormier just missed a double-double, finishing with nine points and nine assists.

For Ware, the bulk of the offense came from Fernando Montalban (20 points) and Ivan Adams (17 points).

Granby (14-8) will play No. 3 Monson (12-10) in the semifinals at a time, date and play to be determined.

The Rams lost twice to the Mustangs in the Bi-Country League, 52-39 and 58-36.

“It’s another basketball game,” Sheehan said. “They’re familiar with us, we’re familiar with them. We’ve just got to come to play. They got one thing on us, they beat us twice, so we really have to focus in on what we need to do a little better.”

Bleakley liked his team’s chances if the Rams can repeat the defensive performance they showed against Ware.

“We’ve just got to play good defense and push up and down the court, and we should be able to win,” Bleakley said.

Granby 51, Ware 52

Ware (9-13)

Desjardins 0-1-1, Adams 6-2-17, Dilone 2-0-5, Slattery 1-2-4, Viera 2-0-4, Doty 0-1-1, Montalban 8-3-20. Totals 19-9-52

Granby (14-8)

Sheehan 0-2-2, Sosa 4-3-11, L’Abbee 0-0-0, Desormier 4-2-9, Bleakley 6-2-15, Gorham 5-4-15, Bessette 2-0-5, King 1-1-4, Stearns 0-0-0, Remillard 0-0-0. Totals 22-12-61

3-Pointers—Ware 5 (Adams 3, Dilone, Montalban), Granby 5 (Desormier, Bleakley, Gorham, Bessette, King)