Division 4 boys basketball: Pioneer Regional bulldozes Smith Vocational

NORTHFIELD — The halftime stat lines spoke volumes Monday night.

The Smith Vocational boys basketball team struggled on offense and had just 11 points, while Pioneer Regional guards Jared Hubbard (16) and Garrett Cote (13) had each outscored the Vikings.

Led by its backcourt tandem, the defending Western Massachusetts Division 4 champions made a statement in their pursuit of another title as they stormed out to a 25-point lead after one quarter and never looked back in a convincing 73-35 victory over the 15th-seeded Vikings on Monday.

The Panthers (18-3) advanced to Thursday night’s quarterfinals, where they will host No. 7 Baystate Academy (18-3) at 7 p.m.

While the Panthers led by as many as 52 points in the second half (69-17), the Vikings never quit and used an 18-0 run in the fourth quarter to pull the final margin within 40 points.

There was no postseason hangover, as Pioneer was off and running from the get-go against an overmatched Smith Voke squad. The Panthers rode the outside shooting of Hubbard and Cote along with a ball-hawking defensive effort in their full court press to take a 19-1 lead out of the gates.

“The energy and effort, attention to detail was there to begin the game,” Pioneer coach Scott Thayer said.

The advantage continued late in the first half. Ryan Potter scored six straight points, and buckets from Joel Emberley and Cote pushed the margin to 29-4 after one.

Smith Vocational (10-11), which made just three field goals in the first half, pulled within 31-9 on a 3-pointer from Jayvon Cordova with 4 minutes, 15 seconds left in the second quarter. He finished with a team-high 11 points.

Devin Rodriguez also scored eight for the Vikings.

Smith Vocational seniors Cordova, Tyler Top, Jason Minor and Rodriguez played their final games.

The Panthers put things out of reach down the stretch. On the strength of a 17-2 run to close out the half, Pioneer used a combined 29 points before intermission from Hubbard and Cote to head into the locker room with a 48-11 edge. The squad hit eight 3-pointers in the first half and finished with 10.

Hubbard led all scorers with a career-high 19 points, as the freshman showcased his complete offensive game with four 3s in addition to some tough baskets in the lane. He also recorded five steals and four assists.

“He’s come a long way this season,” Thayer said.

Cote finished with 13 points, all in the first half, while dishing out eight assists. Potter made it three players in double figures for the hosts as he also scored 13 points.

Pioneer Regional 73,
Smith Vocational 35

Smith Vocational (10-11)

Cordova 4-0-11, Top 0-0-0, Venne 2-1-5, Earle 1-3-5, Pierce 2-0-4, Rivera 0-0-0, Adorno 1-0-2, Rodriguez 3-0-8, Zink 0-0-0, Minor 0-0-0, Boisvert 0-0-0. Totals 13-4-35

PIoneer Regional (18-3)

Emond 2-2-7, Hubbard 7-0-18, Breschner 0-2-2, Potter 4-3-13, Fuller 1-0-2, Cote 4-2-13, Underwood 2-0-4, Fox 2-0-4, Dobosz 1-0-2, McGraw 0-1-1, Brown 1-0-2, Emberly 2-0-4. Totals 26-10-73

3-Pointers—Smith Vocational 5 (Cordova 3, Rodriguez 2), Pioneer Regional 10 (Emond, Hubbard 4, Potter 2, Cote 3)