BRUNSWICK

Edward Little High School boys basketball has experienced its share of satisfying, signature wins in the vintage decade-and-a-half that Mike Adams has shepherded the program.

Hard to say where the 54-46 Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference victory over Brunswick on Saturday afternoon falls on the hit list, but it certainly soars to the top of this season’s chart.

Thirty-nine days earlier, the Dragons ripped the Red Eddies, 67-35 at Auburn Heights. EL (8-6) lost two more to Class AA North opponents before winning seven of eight, the latest this redemptive gem.

“Coach didn’t have to say it. We all knew it coming in,” junior CJ Jipson said. “They beat us by 32 at our house. It was a rough stretch, but since then we’ve pounded the ball inside, and that’s been the key for us.”

The Red Eddies conducted a half-court clinic on both sides of the time line, particularly in the second half.

EL was 8-for-14 from the field and 12-for-16 on the line after intermission. Brunswick (9-5) couldn’t snag a single offensive rebound in the third quarter, when the Eddies expanded a modest 25- 24 edge to 41-30.

Jarod Norcross Plourde was the Dragons’ primary defensive focus after he erupted for 13 points in the first quarter. He still finished with a game-high 19.

Samatar Iman scored 14 of his 15 points in the second half. Jipson, saddled with his third foul in the final minute of the second quarter, was a steady presence down the stretch and combined his eight points with eight assists.

‘To lose by 32 a month-anda half ago and to come back and against a good Brunswick team who’s been playing well, the boys played as a team and did all the things we wanted them to do,” Adams said. “We’re a tough match. That was one of our game plans. We really wanted to spread them out.”

Caleb Cost led Brunswick, a contender in Class A South and EL’s longtime KVAC rival, with 12 points and 10 rebounds. Thomas Hanson added 10 points and blanketed Plourde after his scorching start. JD Souza supplied 10 points off the bench.

Brunswick beat Biddeford convincingly on Friday night. In the next-day matinee, the Dragons were too content to settle for perimeter bids against EL’s 2-3 zone.

“We knew whether we had a week to prepare or 12 hours to prepare, it was going to be a totally different ballgame,” Brunswick coach Todd Hanson said. “With what Mike does with his program, it was going to be a battle. That’s a good club.”

Tyler Morin’s defense silenced Cost — who scored 18 in the previous meeting — during the third quarter while Jipson and Iman nursed foul trouble.

It freed up Iman, previously held without a field goal, to ignite offensively. His 3-pointer from the right wing answered a Corban Teel layup on Brunswick’s opening possession and gave EL the lead for good, 28-26, with 7:14 remaining in the period.

The Dragons stayed within two, 30-28, via Hanson hook shot before a 7-0 Eddies run. Morin’s defensive rebound sent EL on the break and set up a 3-point play by Iman. Plourde broke free and cashed in an inbounds lob from Jipson. Morin knocked down a feathery jumper in the paint.

Iman and Plourde capped the quarter with back-to-back baskets. EL then was remarkably disciplined in the fourth, passing up everything but the most uncontested shots and nursing the clock to hearts’ content.

“We’ve kind of evolved into a jump shooting team, and when we’re not making jump shots, we’re not effective. We didn’t get to the rim and create contact, and therefore we weren’t able to get to the line,” Todd Hanson said. “That really hurt us offensively. They’re very efficient on offense. They didn’t turn the ball over. They either got up a quality shot or we’d foul them.”

Edward Little 54,
Brunswick 46

Saturday at Brunswick
Edward Little — 18 7 16 13 — 54
Brunswick — 14 10 6 16 — 46
Edward Little — Morin 1-0-2, Jipson
0-8-8, Plourde 7-4-19, Iman 5-4-15,
Cox 1-3-5, Hartley 0-0-0, Shea 2-1-5,
Nicholas 0-0-0, Lashua 0-0-0. Totals
— 16-20-54.
Brunswick — Devereaux 3-0-8, Cost
5-2-12, Hanson 4-0-10, Teel 1-0-2,
Dorr 0-2-2, Rudalevige 0-0-0, Glover
1-0-2, Bucknam 0-0-0, Souza 4-0-10.
Totals — 18-4-46.
3-point field goals — (EL) Plourde,
Iman; (B) Deveraux 2, Hanson 2,
Souza 2.
Records — Edward Little 8-6,
Brunswick 9-5.
Up next for the Dragons — Tuesday
at Cony, 7 p.m.

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