Marcus DeVoe scored a game-high 24 points Thursday night to lead fourth-seeded Lake Region to a 52-50 victory against top-ranked Yarmouth in a Western Class B boys’ basketball semifinal at the Cross Insurance Arena.
The Lakers (15-5) will play second-seeded Cape Elizabeth (17-3) for the regional championship at 3:45 p.m. Saturday at the Cross Arena.
Lake Region was a completely different team from the one that lost to Yarmouth on the road by 32 points on Jan. 30.
“That game was an anomaly,” said Lake Region Coach J.P. Yorkey. “Yarmouth hit like 11 3-pointers against us.”
This time the Lakers clamped down on Yarmouth’s 3-point shooters, handled its press, and got the ball inside when DeVoe wasn’t drilling 3s.
Yarmouth (16-4) made only 2 of 13 shots from beyond the arc.
Still, the Lakers had to survive one last 3-pointer by Adam LaBrie, Yarmouth’s best shooter.
After a missed Lakers free throw, LaBrie got the ball with the final seconds counting down and dribbled to one of his favorite spots on the floor, just above the top of the key. But his shot hit the left side of the rim and bounced away as the game ended.
“I thought we played great defense,” said Yorkey. “Quinn Piland did a nice job on LaBrie.”
As for DeVoe, Yorkey said the junior guard picked the right time to shine.
“What we saw from Marcus tonight, I’ve seen from him before,” said Yorkey. “But tonight he shot the ball the best he has. He put it together at the right time.”
DeVoe finished with seven 3-pointers – a Western Class B tournament record for a game. The previous mark of six was jointly held by Dean Boudreau of Mountain Valley in 1994 and Bailey Train of Greely last season.
“We have a lot of good scorers,” said DeVoe. “My teammates kept feeding me the ball.”
After DeVoe gave Lake Region a seven-point lead with six minutes remaining, the Clippers rallied, helped by a couple Laker turnovers.
Cody Cook of Yarmouth made a three-point play to cut it to 46-44 with 3:40 left. Piland scored inside moments later to make it a four-point game, but Cook scored again right after. After another inside basket by Piland, LaBrie followed with a 3 from the top of the key to slice Yarmouth’s deficit to 50-49.
Nick Hall of Lake Region made two from the free-throw line with 23 seconds left to make it 52-49. After a 3-point miss by Yarmouth, the Clippers launched another 3, this one by LaBrie, who was fouled with six seconds remaining.
He missed the first, made the second and threw the third off the rim, hoping his team would get the rebound. The Lakers got it, but after a foul, they missed the free throw and Yarmouth raced down for LaBrie’s his 3-point attempt at the end.
Piland added 10 points for Lake Region. Yarmouth was led by Cook and LaBrie with 18 points apiece.
“We were able to find guys open inside,” said Yorkey. “That was a key for us. That and our defense.”
Copy the Story Link
Send questions/comments to the editors.
Success. Please wait for the page to reload. If the page does not reload within 5 seconds, please refresh the page.
Enter your email and password to access comments.
Hi, to comment on stories you must . This profile is in addition to your subscription and website login.
Already have a commenting profile? .
Invalid username/password.
Please check your email to confirm and complete your registration.
Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.
Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.