Division 3 boys basketball: South Hadley falls behind early in loss at Monument Mountain

Four consecutive Monument Mountain 3-pointers established the tone early, as the South Hadley boys basketball team fell 71-49 against the Spartans in the opening round of the Western Massachusetts Division 3 tournament Monday.

Tyler Higgins, who finished with 17 points, hit three of those 3s, the last of which put No. 6 Monument Mountain up 20-9 in the first quarter and forced a timeout by the 11th-seeded Tigers.

The Spartans (16-5) will travel to No. 3 Narragansett, who had a bye to the quarterfinals, Thursday at 7 p.m.

Monday, South Hadley ignored the roaring crowd and jumped out to an early 7-4 lead, but Dion Brown scored back-to-back baskets to keep the score close. He finished with a game-high 24 points.

Monument Mountain (16-5) stretched its lead 37-20 at halftime and outscored the Tigers (6-15) 21-10 in the third quarter.

Hunter Carey and Liam Dawson each scored 11 points to lead South Hadley.

Early in the first quarter Monument had its hands full with a South Hadley team that picked apart its full-court press on the game’s first three possessions. Hunter Borowski led the charge, scoring all 10 points in the first quarter for the Tigers.

South Hadley seniors Dawson, Borowski and Cristiano Casolari played their final game for the Tigers. South Hadley started the season 0-7 before winning four of its last five games to clinch second in the Bi-County East league and qualify for the postseason.

The Berkshire Eagle’s Jeff Mendell contributed to this report.

Monument Mountain 71, South Hadley 49

South Hadley (6-15)

Fitzell 0-0-0, Braithiwate 0-0-0, Borowski 4-0-10, Marion 1-1-3, Carey 3-5-11, Casolari 2-0-4, Cottingham 1-0-3, Piquette 2-1-5, Dawson 3-5-11, Johnson 0-0-0, Robinette 0-0-0, Porier 1-0-2. Totals 17-12-49

Monument Mountain (16-5)

Robbins 2-3-7, Zorn 0-2-2, Hanavan 0-0-0, Higgins 6-2-17. Brown 10-0-24, Santos 0-1-1, Powell 1-0-2, Carlson 2-0-4, Shultis 1-1-3, Curtis 1-0-2, Gidarakus 0-0-0, Brownson 4-1-9. Totals 27-10-71

3-Pointers—South Hadley 3 (Borowski 2, Cottingham), Monument Mountain 7 (Brown 4, Higgins 3)