PORTLAND—It’s been 14 years coming, but Cheverus’ boys basketball team will be the top seed and favorite for the upcoming Class AA tournament.

After capping its regular season with a rousing victory over rival Portland Wednesday evening at Keegan Gymnasium.

Much was at stake in the teams’ mutual regular season finale, as the Stags were hoping to lock up the number one spot, while the Bulldogs hoped to give longtime coach Joe Russo his landmark 500th victory.

For eight minutes, it looked like a Portland party might be in store, as the Bulldogs rode a pair of 3-pointer from junior Cordell Jones to a 13-12 lead.

But Cheverus, behind a smothering 2-3 zone defense and an offensive approach which led to easy basket after easy basket, gradually seized control.

Early in the second period, senior standout Leo McNabb made a free throw to put the Stags in front to stay and they were up by seven, 29-22, at the half.

Junior Jameson Fitzpatrick then dominated the third quarter, scoring nine points, and by the end of the frame, Cheverus enjoyed a 47-32 advantage.

Portland never drew closer than that and the Stags closed out a 58-43 victory.

Fitzpatrick led the way with 20 points, McNabb added 14 and Cheverus finished the regular season 15-3, dropping the Bulldogs to 9-9 in the process.

“I’m really happy for the guys and their families who dedicate a lot to the school,” said Stags coach Richie Ashley. “We realized coming in that if we won, we’re number one and that’s been the goal the entire year. The guys achieved it. Credit to them. These guys are my guys. They’ve only played for me. They’re like my little brothers.”

Too much at both ends

Cheverus has been a powerhouse from the get-go this winter, while it took Portland awhile to hit its stride.

The Bulldogs started with losses at Bangor (65-60), Scarborough (61-53) and at home to Cheverus (46-38). Portland got in the win column with an overtime victory at Deering (56-52), then edged host Kennebunk (38-37). After losing at home to reigning Class AA champion Windham in a regional final rematch (56-49), the Bulldogs downed visiting Sanford (63-54) before falling short at Lewiston (56-52) and at South Portland (70-48). After going to overtime to survive visiting Bangor, 49-46, Portland downed visiting Deering (60-41) and host Edward Little (52-31). After losing at Thornton Academy (47-38) and at home to Marshwood (30-28), the Bulldogs caught fire and downed visiting Lewiston (47-31), host Oxford Hills (62-42) and Tuesday, toppled visiting South Portland, 46-38, pushing Russo’s career win total to 499.

Cheverus, meanwhile, began the season by downing visiting Deering in overtime (66-60), host Bonny Eagle (69-35) and Portland (46-38), visiting South Portland (66-44) and visiting Bangor (79-51) before falling at home to Windham (59-55). The Stags then beat visiting Massabesic (77-36), host Edward Little (58-43) and visiting Gorham (68-40). After a 61-49 home loss to Thornton Academy, Cheverus won at Sanford (83-68) and at home against Oxford Hills (70-45). After letting a late lead slip away in a tough loss at Deering, 65-62, the Stags bounced back and earned a pivotal 66-51 victory at Windham  before holding off host Scarborough, 59-54, winning impressively at South Portland (54-37), then holding off host Lewiston Tuesday, 49-48.

“The past three years, if we played like that against Lewiston we would have lost, but we buckled down and made plays and were still able to win,” Ashley said.

In the teams’ first meeting, way back on Dec. 13, Cheverus clung to a three-point lead heading into the fourth quarter at the Portland Exposition Building, then wound up winning by eight, as McNabb had 15 points and sophomore Nicola Plalum added 14. Portland was paced by senior Devin Walker’s 11 points.

This one was originally scheduled to be played Thursday, but predicted bad weather moved it up 25 hours.

After Cheverus’ seniors were honored in a pregame ceremony, the Bulldogs looked to flip the result from the teams’ first meeting and give Russo a landmark victory, but instead, the Stags closed the regular season in style, cutting Portland’s lead in the all-time series, which dates to Jan. 16, 1925, to 103-98.

The Stags struck first as senior Aaron Goodman, who is usually one of the first players off the bench but who started on this night, took a pass from McNabb and made a layup 46 seconds in.

The Bulldogs drew even on a runner from junior Loic Ramazani, but after a McNabb steal, he fed Goodman for a 3-ball which rolled around and in.

Fitzpatrick then entered the game and immediately made his presence felt with a 3, again off a feed from McNabb.

Portland crept back, as junior Lucas LeGage sank a 3 of his own (from sophomore Maddox Meas), then Ramazani made a layup after a steal.

After senior Sammy Nzeyimana set up Fitzpatrick for a layup, Jones sank his first 3 to tie the score, 10-10.

Plalum then drove for a layup, but a late 3 from Jones (set up by Meas) made it 13-12 Portland after eight minutes.

But that would be as good as it got for the visitors.

Just eight seconds into the second quarter, Nzeyimana set up senior Shema Rwaganje for a 3.

A jumper from Meas tied the score, but with 6:15 to go before halftime, McNabb made the first of two free throws and Cheverus wouldn’t look back from there.

After sophomore AJ Lauture sank two free throws for the Stags, Jones drove for a layup, but McNabb answered at the other end, driving and making a layup with his left hand.

With 2:58 on the first half clock, McNabb hit a 3 and Russo called timeout.

It didn’t help, as out of the timeout, Rwaganje stole the ball and got it to Fitzpatrick, who set up Plalum for a layup.

A 3-ball from LeGage momentarily stemmed the tide and snapped a 7-0 Cheverus run, but Rwaganje answered with a jumper that rattled home.

In the final minute before halftime, Jones banked home a shot for Portland, but Plalum found Fitzpatrick for a layup and a 29-22 lead at the break.

In the first half, Jones led all scorers with 10 points, but the Stags’ balance and ability to share the ball to set up easy looks proved to be the difference.

And that difference would be even more pronounced in the second half.

The third quarter began with a Fitzpatrick free throw, followed by a Fitzpatrick putback.

The Bulldogs made things interesting, as Walker made a free throw and Meas drove and banked home a shot to cut the deficit to seven, but the Stags pulled away with seven straight points.

The tide then turned for good, as McNabb set up Plalum in the corner for a 3.

Plalum then fed Fitzpatrick for a layup and McNabb drove and scored on a reverse layup to make it 39-25.

With 3:42 to go in the quarter, a LeGage layup, set up by Ramazani, snapped the surge, but Fitzpatrick, who finds holes in the defense better than anyone this side of Travis Kelce, made another layup.

“Leo and Sammy and all the guards do a very good job drawing the defense and I just get to that open spot,” said Fitzpatrick.

“(Jameson) has a knack for getting open,” Ashley said. “Everyone is so cognizant of Leo and that opens up space.”

Ramazani got two points back with a layup, but Fitzpatrick countered again with two free throws.

After Ramazani made it an 11-point game with a 3-ball, Cheverus closed the period in style, as McNabb hit two free throws and McNabb found Goodman for another layup and a 47-32 advantage heading to the final stanza.

There, any lingering doubt was quickly dashed by Fitzpatrick, who first took a pass from Plalum and made a layup, then took a feed from McNabb and converted another layup.

After LeGage made a layup on the fastbreak, McNabb got to the rim himself and made a layup for a 53-34 lead.

Meas hit a runner, but the back-and-forth continued with McNabb again scoring on a layup.

After Jones drove for a layup, senior Igor Nganji, much to the partisan crowd’s delight, sank a 3 for the Stags’ final points.

“I was really happy for Igor,” Ashley said. “He’s a team guy. He’ll do anything for the team.”

In the final minute, LeGage sank two free throws and Meas converted an old-fashioned three-point play (basket, foul, free throw), but it was far too little, too late and Cheverus brought the curtain down on its 58-43 victory.

“We just stayed calm and focused and we didn’t get fatigued,” McNabb said. “We stayed at the same level of play the whole game. We have a fast-paced offense and our movement off the ball and great coaching gets us easy looks. The guys are always moving and trying to set each other up.”

“It was tough to bounce back,” Fitzpatrick said. “It was a little hard to get started energy-wise, at least for myself, but as a team we got it done.”

“Ever since the Deering loss, we’ve jelled and bonded,” Ashley added. “We’ve been playing more as a team and haven’t been reliant on one guy. We did a good job holding them down. It’s nervewracking not having your starting lineup in a rivalry game like this, but the seniors deserved it. That’s a testament to them. It’s fun to play here. I don’t even know the last time we played here. It’s been awhile.”

Fitzpatrick was a force, scoring 20 points, while also grabbing six rebounds.

“(Not starting tonight) was different, like going back to freshman year,” Fitzpatrick said. “It was fun though because it was great to see the seniors perform. They’re my best friends. I love those guys.”

“We’re a tough team when Jameson is playing like that inside,” said Ashley. “We’re getting scoring inside instead of having to rely on 3s and on Leo doing what he does.”

“(Fitzpatrick) commanded the ball down low and plays well and they find him,” Russo said. “He’s a finisher.”

McNabb’s final game at Keegan Gymnasium resulted in 14 points and a game-high seven assists.

“It’s crazy to think about all the games I played here and that this was the last one,” McNabb said. “I wanted to help make it special for all the guys tonight.”

Goodman added seven points and two rebounds, Plalum had seven points, six rebounds and three assists, Rwaganje finished with five points, six rebounds and three steals, Nganji had three points and Lauture finished with two.

“Shema and Nicola hit big shots,” Ashley said. “AJ played well defensively. ‘Goody’ at the start of the game had five big points.”

The Stags had a slim 27-24 edge on the glass, overcame 13 turnovers and hit 8-of-10 foul shots.

For Portland, Jones (three assists, three steals, two rebounds) and LeGage (two steals) led the way with 12 points apiece. Meas (six rebounds, three assists) added nine points, as did Ramazani, who also had five rebounds and three steals. Walker contributed one point.

The Bulldogs made 4-of-6 foul shots, but gave the ball away 17 times.

“That was a veteran team against pretty much an all-rookie team,” Russo said. “When you play back-to-back, veteran teams can do that. We needed a couple days to review some zone stuff, but it is what it is. We didn’t run anything correctly. Cheverus played an active 2-3 zone and we couldn’t hit a shot. We didn’t have the energy we normally have. Our energy and our defensive presence were disappointing and they dominated the boards. We’ve only had two stinkers out of 18 games this year. A stinker against South Portland the first game and another one tonight.

“I’d like to have another crack at Cheverus in a different situation.”

On to the quarterfinals

Portland projects to be the No. 3 in Class AA North. The Bulldogs expect to host Oxford Hills or Lewiston next Wednesday in the quarterfinal round.

“To be 9-9 from where we started with our inexperience is borderline remarkable and now, it’s a new season,” Russo said. “We’re all the same. We can all beat each other. Let’s see what we can do with our first playoff game. It won’t be easy. We have a lot of preparing to do. We’ll enjoy the next three or four days of practice. I’m proud to be the third seed and I want the kids to be proud of that. I don’t think many programs could have done what we did.”

Cheverus earned a bye into the semifinals at the Cross Insurance Arena Thursday, Feb. 20.

Meaning, the Stags will sit idle for over two weeks.

But don’t expect any letdown when they return to action.

Not with a clear mission ahead of them.

“It feels like we’re on an upward trajectory and that feels great,” Fitzpatrick said. “We’ll practice hard the next week-and-a-half and do what we do.”

“We would have liked to be 18-0, but it’s great,” McNabb said. “It’s a good start, but we’re not done yet. We have to focus on defense. No plays off. That’s what we were lacking the past couple years. Offense will come to us. I feel like we have what it takes to make a run.”

“We have to get the monkey off our back,” added Ashley, after pointing out a couple of stuffed monkeys the team is using for motivation. “The real season starts now. Just because we’re the one seed doesn’t mean anything. On any given night, anybody can beat anybody.

“This is almost like a second preseason. We’ll take a couple days off, then we’ll focus on some things we can get better at. We’ll get back to fundamentals. We just have to play together and play our game. If we do that, we’ll have a shot at winning. I was fortunate enough to win a state championship as a player. I took the job wanting to get us back and win it for these guys and our community. It’s a journey we’re happy to take.”

BOX SCORE

Cheverus 58 Portland 43

P- 13 9 10 11- 43
C- 12 17 18 11- 58

P- Jones 5-0-12, LeGage 4-2-12, Meas 4-1-9, Ramazani 4-0-9, Walker 0-1-1

C- Fitzpatrick 8-3-20, McNabb 5-3-14, Goodman 3-0-7, Plalum 3-0-7, Rwaganje 2-0-5, Nganji 1-0-3, Lauture 0-2-2

3-pointers
P (5) Jones, LeGage 2, Ramazani
C (6) Fitzpatrick, Goodman, McNabb, Nganji, Plalum, Rwaganje

Turnovers:
P- 17
C- 13

Free throws
P: 4-6
C: 8-10

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