Saturday, 7:05 p.m., Augusta Civic Center
Portland starters
• Stephen Alex, sr., F: 16.6 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 4.0 spg
• Amir Moss, jr., F: 11.7 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 2.2 spg
• Joe Esposito, jr., G: 3.9 ppg, 4.8 rpg
• Tanner Foley, sr., C: 4.1 ppg, 4.4 rpg
• Liam Densmore, sr., G: 12.3 ppg, 2.2 3s per game
Keys for Portland: The Bulldogs are at their best when they are running. Portland wants to make it a 94-foot game. The Bulldogs won’t have a size edge on the Broncos, but they will have an edge in quickness. Portland’s press turned around last year’s final against Hampden; look for the Bulldogs to press again. Portland will need to take care of the basketball against the Broncos’ long defenders, and must stay out of foul trouble and rebound. Portland will spread the ball around and try to hit some 3s. Defensively, the Bulldogs will focus on slowing down Nick Gilpin, Jake Black and Brendan McIntyre.
Hampden Academy starters
• Nick Gilpin, jr., G: 16.0 ppg, 7.0 apg, 8.0 rpg
• Brendan McIntyre, jr., F: 13.0 ppg, 6.0 rpg
• Ian McIntyre fr. C: 5.0 ppg, 4.0 rpg
• Jake Black, jr., G: 8.0 ppg, 2.0 apg
• Conary Moore, jr., F: 8.0 ppg, 6.0 rpg
Keys for Hampden Academy: Limit turnovers against Portland’s press. The Broncos want to keep the tempo to their advantage and make it a half-court game. They’ll try to take advantage of their size and win the rebounding battle. Hampden hopes to get an early lead to create some indecision for Portland. The Broncos could do that by hitting 3-pointers and getting the ball inside for layups. They also hope to take advantage of their familiarity with the Augusta Civic Center. Gilpin averaged 20 points in the regional tournament while leading Hampden to its fourth consecutive state title game.
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