FREEPORT — Coach Jeff LaRochelle wanted his Rangeley High School boys basketball team to keep shooting.

After early struggles, the message finally paid off for the Lakers early in the third quarter, as Rangeley pulled away from the Pine Tree Academy Breakers for a 68-33 Class D South win Tuesday night.

“If you take yourself out of it mentally and stop shooting you’re never going to have that quarter where it started to happen for us,” said LaRochelle. “But, they got through it. It’s a good road win.”

The Lakers started the game with 3-for-10 shooting from the field. Nolan Boone paced the Lakers in the opening quarter, working his way to the hoop for a pair of early baskets.

The Breakers were unable to score midway through the quarter, allowing Rangeley to go on an 8-2 run. Jobet Tardiff picked up his own rebound and went back up for two to end the run for Pine Tree.

Both teams struggled to find an offensive rhythm early as the Lakers held an 8-6 lead after one quarter.

“We had some layups that just came off the backboard hard,” said LaRochelle. “We took the lead but, then we let them back in. It’s kind of what we’ve been doing this year.”

“We had so many turnovers tonight,” said Breakers coach Trevor Schlisner. “When our star player Chris Amisi did give up the ball, we couldn’t catch and couldn’t finish which led to some discouragement.”

PTA regained the lead early in the second quarter. Noraj Jean-Louise spun on his man inside for an easy bucket, followed by Amisi breaking through Rangeley pressure to get to the hoop. The Breakers caused three turnovers to start the quarter before Rangeley settled down.

Boone once again sparked an 11-0 Rangeley run to end the half, knocking down a pair of jumpers. Will Brey took advantage of a Breakers turnover and drove to the hoop for two. Brey added another at the free-throw line to cap off the run and send Rangeley into halftime with a 19-10 lead.

“I felt OK at (the) half, said Schlisner. “I didn’t feel good about our offense because we only scored 10 points. That’s not normal.”

Lakers pull away

Rangeley began the third quarter on a 9-2 run for a 28-12 lead. The Lakers forced PTA into four early turnovers by pressuring the Breakers the length of the floor. Ian Willis led the Rangeley run with an early four points out of the break.

“All of a sudden we get going, and our press works really well,” said LaRochelle. “We wore them down. I told them it might not happen until the third quarter but it will wear them down.”

With Pine Tree trailing 42-19 midway through the quarter, Amisi pulled off an impressive seven-point swing in under 10 seconds. After missing the second of two foul shots, Amisi drifted beyond the arc to knock down a trey. He then picked off the ensuing inbound pass and went up for another two, adding a foul shot for a three-point play.

“It’s tough. We really have one offensive threat,” said Schlisner. “We’re trying to move the ball two or three times.”

Despite Amisi’s efforts, the Breakers still trailed 44-28 after three quarters. The fourth belonged to the Lakers, who knocked down five straight shots from the field early in the quarter. Kenny Thompson helped Rangeley pull away for the win with eight points in the final quarter, while Boone knocked down a two shots from 3-point range.

Rangeley improved to 8-4 and is in fourth place in the Class D South Heal Point Standings. The Lakers were led by Boone’s 23 points, while Thompson chipped in 17.

PTA fell to 3-9 with the loss. The Breakers were led by Amisi’s 15 points, and currently sit in the final Class D South playoff spot.

“We’re hoping to get a couple more (wins),” said Schlisner. “I think if we can get out of that last spot we give ourselves a fighter’s chance in the playoffs.”

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