H.S. basketball: Holyoke wins season opener over Northampton 73-70

The Holyoke boys basketball team opened its season with a hard-fought, 73-70 victory over Northampton on Thursday night.

With just over 30 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter, the Purple Knights held a seven-point lead, hoping to just drain the rest of the clock out for an opening day win.

Hanging on to the ball was a struggle for Holyoke, especially late in the game. A steal by the Blue Devils after a made layup led to a 3-pointer by Roan Steed on the left wing, shrinking the lead to 71-69.

Georlee Aponte was quickly fouled on the ensuing inbound, sending him to the line where he made both his free throws to put the game away.

Both teams look pretty different than they did last season, with a crop of new players getting their first chance at real playing time on Thursday. It led to a plethora of turnovers and missed shots on both sides, with the Purple Knights making their late-game opportunities count.

“I knew it was [going to] be an ugly game,” Holyoke head coach Juan Maldanado said. “Whoever was [going to] get the win is whoever made a few more plays in the end with some of the returning guys.”

Senior Julian Fasoli led the way for the Holyoke offensively, finding great success from outside. The guard knocked down six 3-pointers, finishing his night with a game-high 28 points.

Fasoli had nine points in just the first quarter, with Holyoke getting out to a sizable lead. The quarter ended with the score 22-12, with Northampton coming out of the gate with new life.

The Blue Devils scored at will in the second frame, flipping the script and draining the momentum from their opponent. Outscoring the Purple Knights 22-15 in the quarter shrank the deficit to just 37-34 at halftime.

“As soon as we stopped playing defense and not being disciplined, [Northampton] got some buckets, and it was hard to get in transition and get some easy buckets,” Maldanado said.

Offensive rebounding was where the Blue Devils made their living, crashing the glass hard and getting second-chance points.

Eli Reid used his size to get position down low as every shot went up, corralling rebounds all night long. Reid’s 23-point night was overshadowed by the loss, but his efforts stood out.

Giving up offensive rebounds as much as Holyoke did on Thursday won’t be sustainable as the season goes on, but the team will be happy to walk away with a tough win to open the season regardless.

The victory gets the Purple Knights out to a good start to the year, with growth to be had as the season progresses. Holyoke’s next contest is at home against Putnam on Thursday, Dec. 18, at 7 p.m.

For Northampton, they’ll look to learn from the loss, hoping to bounce back in its home opener against Amherst on Wednesday, Dec. 17, at 7:30 p.m.

“We’re just getting better with every day that goes by,” Maldonado said. “With a young crew … it’s just guys finding out who can do what and what role they play.”