AUGUSTA — Usually it’s Evan Worster in the limelight for the Forest Hills boys’ basketball team. Last year he scored a tournament-record 51 points against A.R. Gould.
But when the teams met again Wednesday in a Western Class D semifinal at the Augusta Civic Center, it was the Ouellette brothers, Brandon and Derick, who led the defending regional champion Tigers to a 78-50 win.
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Brandon Ouellette, a sophomore point guard, connected on five 3-pointers and scored 19 points. Derick Ouellette, a senior forward, added a career-high 32 points. Worster had 14.
The victory put the top-seeded Tigers (18-2) into Saturday’s regional final at the Augusta Civic Center against rival Valley.
The brothers were the perfect answer for the zone defense used by fourth-seeded A.R. Gould (11-8), with Derick’s work in the paint opening the perimeter for Brandon, and vice versa.
“That was one of our game plans, to pack it inside,” Derick said. “We knew they were going to go for the ball fake, so just pump fake and throw it up.”
The Ouellettes helped the Tigers open an 18-point lead in the second quarter. Brandon hit three 3s, one from the left corner and two from the right, and Derick scored 10 points, all on layups.
“If I can get my shot down like I did today, they have to extend the defense on me,” Brandon said. “Last year I threw it up at any time. This year I pass the ball more to get it into the paint.”
Brandon’s third 3 of the quarter extended the lead to 31-21. Later in the quarter, Derick sandwiched two layups around a Worster free throw to make it 39-21. The Bears never full recovered despite good performances from Zacharia Mohamed (19 points, 12 rebounds) and Tim Robertson (13 points, four assists).
“Evan was our high scorer last year,” Derick Ouellette said. “Everybody worked a little bit more on offense (in the offseason) and everybody got better, so you never know who’s going to be high scorer.”
Ryan Petrin added eight points and grabbed nine rebounds for Forest Hills. Derick Ouellette scored eight points in the third quarter, when the Tigers pulled out to a 22-point lead.
And Brandon added a 3 near the end of the quarter and another to begin the fourth to run the lead to 25.
“Brandon Ouellette is an absolute gym rat,” Forest Hills Coach Anthony Amero said. “He has really worked hard to develop his shot. The other day we’re getting ready to come down here, it’s 6 a.m., we’re scheduled to leave at 6:30 and there’s Brandon, already in the gym, taking shot after shot after shot.”
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