FALMOUTH — With Carter Edgerton on the bench after fouling out, Biddeford looked to his replacement to secure a big Class A South boys’ basketball win Wednesday night against Falmouth.

Jerome Criado hit four free throws in the final 10 seconds as the visiting Tigers held on for a 40-39 victory. The win avenged a 45-32 loss on Dec. 19.

Biddeford (10-3) jumped three spots to second place in the Class A South Heal point standings. Falmouth (7-6), which entered the game one spot ahead of the Tigers, dropped to fifth place.

“This was big in the Heal points,” Biddeford Coach Justin Tardif said. “It looks like Greely is the best in the division. After that, it’s wide open. We could very well be playing (Falmouth) at the Expo (in the regional tournament).”

After Biddeford twice missed the front end of 1-and-1 free throws in the final minute, Criado, a senior guard, canned a pair with 10.7 seconds remaining for a 38-34 advantage.

Then, after Falmouth’s Sam Manganello drained a long jump shot with a toe on the 3-point line with just under six seconds remaining, Criado was fouled in the backcourt. He stepped to the line with 4.7 left and again made both shots to give the Tigers a 40-36 lead.

Falmouth’s Alex Marcotte swished a 3-pointer at the buzzer.

“I think on any free throw, I just come down and do my routine,” said Criado, who also hit a pair of first-half 3-pointers and finished with 10 points. “I am confident shooting free throws no matter what the score is.”

Kyle Norton led the Tigers with 11 points. Jackson Oloya had eight points, and DeSean Cromwell contributed six points and eight rebounds.

Falmouth got 11 points each from Manganello and Jack Bryant. Niklas Hester added five points, five rebounds, two steals and a blocked shot.

The Yachtsmen lost starting guard Brady Douglas to an apparent knee injury midway through the second quarter. He’s the third starter who has gone down with an injury this season, according to Coach Dave Halligan.

“That’s been the story for us all year – injuries. It’s next man up for us,” he said.

Falmouth, which hadn’t played since a 45-41 win over Thornton Academy on Jan. 15, found itself down 13-4 after the first quarter. The Yachtsmen clamped down on defense and allowed only 13 points over the next two quarters as they closed to within 26-25.

“We were a little out of sync (to start),” Halligan added. “Once we got into the game and started playing, we were fine. But we couldn’t get over the hump. Biddeford’s defense had a lot to do with that.”

Falmouth took its first lead, 27-26, on a shot in the lane by Nico Pitre 1:05 into the fourth quarter. A free throw by Manganello made it a two-point lead.

Norton answered with five straight points, including a three-point play on an 18-foot jumper from the right corner and the ensuing free throw. Cody Saucier’s only points of the game – a 3-pointer a little further away in the same corner – stretched the lead to 34-28 with 2:23 left.

“Cody’s our leading scorer, and you have to give credit to him and the whole team, because sometimes when the leading scorer doesn’t score a lot, everyone can get mentally out of it,” Tardif said.

“He kept doing his thing and made a big shot.”

With its 10th win Biddeford will finish with a winning record for only the second time since a 14-4 campaign in the 2003-04 season.

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