A member of the Cheverus High student section was the one dressed as the pope, but it was aptly surnamed senior guard Indiana Faithfull who converted any Stags doubters into believers on Tuesday night.

The lone holdover from last year’s starting five that led Cheverus to an undefeated regular season, Faithfull banked in the game-winning shot with seven seconds to go to lift his team to a 50-48 SMAA boys basketball win over visiting Westbrook at Keegan Gymnasium in Portland.

Westbrook graduated only two players from last year’s squad, which finished No. 2 in the regular season. Led by returning big men Dominic Borelli and Nich Jobin, the Blue Blazes (1-1) are expected to be a top contender for the Western Maine Class A title this year. The Stags, however, showed that they, too, remain at the head of any frontrunner discussion.

With the game tied at 48-48 and 1:28 remaining, Cheverus called timeout. The Stags spread the floor and worked the ball around on offense for the final shot. With the seconds ticking down, Faithfull drove right. Closely defended, he pulled back to gain some separation and, off one foot, lofted a soft shot of the glass and in. Not quite a miracle – wouldn’t want to get blasphemous here – but a very difficult shot, nonetheless.

“We didn’t want to put the ball in their hands,” said the 6-foot-3 Faithfull, an Australian native who is considered a Division I college prospect. “We just wanted to make sure we got the last shot. It just happened that I got a layup. Luckily enough, it went in. It was luck. I’m not sure I could do that again.”

The Blazes quickly called timeout with 4.3 seconds showing on the clock. The referees conferred and put another two seconds back on, giving Westbrook 6.3 seconds for a final try. Point guard Jose Nouchanthavong attempted to part the Cheverus defensive sea, but Faithfull intervened, using the one foul the Stags had left to give with 1.3 seconds remaining. Westbrook again called timeout to set up a play, but the inbounds pass was deflected and the Blazes were unable to get off a shot.

“They had a foul to give and they did a nice job of throwing us off our rhythm on the last play,” said Westbrook coach Mark Karter. “Early in the season, we haven’t had a lot of time to work on our end-of-game situation stuff, and unfortunately that really came back to bite us in this game.”

Westbrook rallied from a 10-point deficit in the second quarter to take a 40-38 lead into the fourth quarter, but Cheverus began the final period with back-to-back 3-point baskets by Alex Furness and Louie DiStasio to regain the lead at 44-40 with 6:36 left. Westbrook answered with a three-point play by Borelli, and tied the game at 46-46 on a 3 by Nouchanthavong. Faithfull, who finished with a team-high 15 points, converted a drive to put Cheverus up two, only to have Borelli counter with a putback that made it 48-48. Borelli led Westbrook with 15 points, while Nouchanthavong added 14.

“They are a great team,” Faithfull said. “For us to win this game early on in the season shows a lot from us. They’ll definitely be a contender this year.”

Three first-year varsity players came up big for the Stags. Connor O’Neil came off the bench to score eight points, all in the first half. Griffin Brady, who is a slender 6-5, chipped in seven points and held his own battling down low, and Furness, a Wells transfer, also added seven points.

“I thought that we were going to get physically pushed around because they are bigger, they are stronger,” said Cheverus coach Bob Brown. “But our kids didn’t back down. We’re tall, we’re lean, we’re lanky, but tonight we also were tough.”

Cheverus took a 21-11 lead with 5:32 to go in the first half as Brady scored inside. But with Faithfull on the bench in foul trouble, Nouchanthavong sparked a Westbrook run with seven second-quarter points and two steals to close the deficit to 26-24 at halftime.

“Jose Nouchanthavong did a great job tonight,” Karter said. “He controlled the flow of the game and made some great baskets.”

Cheverus made seven 3s to Westbrook’s three. The Blazes hoisted plenty from beyond the arc – especially early on – but struggled to find their range.

“That defense is a tough defense to play against,” Karter said. “I thought we took the easy way out early in the game and settled for a lot of 3s. As the game wore on, we got into more of a flow on offense and got into some inside-outside stuff. Jose really sparked that for us.”

Jobin added 10 points for Westbrook.

The Blazes will look to bounce back when they return to action Friday night, hosting Windham at 7 p.m.

“As the year goes on, I think we’re going to get better,” Karter said. “I like my team and I’d like to see where we’re going to be in five or six weeks.”

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