WESTBROOK – Miece Loureiro posted a game-high 19 and teammate Zac Manoogian trailed him closely with 14 as the Blazes downed visiting Bonny Eagle 49-32 on Monday afternoon, Dec. 16.

“I had seen Bonny Eagle play, and I knew they were a capable team,” Westbrook head coach Dan Legage said. “They’re a double-A team, so they play in a challenging league with big schools. They came in fired up to play us, and we did a good job.”

“We knew it was going to be a tough game,” said Bonny Eagle assistant coach John Trull. “They’re a pretty good team and they have some tough players. We were just trying to control the tempo with defense and keep the score low.”

For the majority of the first half, the action unfolded tightly. Manoogian opened the scoring with a three, but Connor Sirois promptly responded with a three of his own. Bonny Eagler Jack Hogan followed Sirois up with a two and Will Hendrix added two more, and suddenly the Scots had seized an early advantage, 7-3.

Westbrook diligently battled back, however. Deng Jany cut the Blazes’ deficit to 7-5 before Sirois and Manoogian traded threes once again. A Bailey Sawyer bucket then evened the scoreboard at 10-all.

Two Hendrix frees gave Bonny Eagle back the lead, if only momentarily: The team pulled a technical foul at the end of the quarter, and Manoogian, Westbrook’s shooter, sank all three of his attempts from the line. 14-12 after one.

Manoogian, a Westbrook standout, was no doubt on the Scots’ radar, coming in. Trull noted as much, and also singled out Loureiro as a handful: “He was tough to keep off the glass,” Trull said. “Tough kid; creates some trouble for us on the defensive end.”

Legage remarked on both Loureiro and Manoogian as well. “We ran some things to Miece,” he said. “There’s so much focus on Zac, that getting the other guys to step up and help – Miece, and Deng, and Bailey, and guys come in, like Jeremiah Alado – they come in, ready to contribute. Then it makes us a difficult team to guard.”

“They were double-teaming him, running two guys at him, but he’s done a good job handling all that,” Legage said of Manoogian. “Because that’s been going on for two years. The difference is, this year, he’s making better decisions when two guys run at him. He’s able to turn the corner, get by guys, hit the open guy for a layup, get to the free-throw line. You know, do other things than just hit the jumper.”

The second proved roughly as close as the first had. Sirois stole back the lead for the Scots at 17-16, but Loureiro – beginning to catch fire after lukewarm start – regained it for the Blazes at 18-17. Bonny Eagle would never recover, though a Hendrix three-point play did even things up one last time at 20-20. From there, Westbrook began to pull away.

In particular, the Blazes changed up their defense as the second wound down, a tactic that allowed them to force several consecutive turnovers, none of which the team wasted. Loureiro himself hashed eight points in approximately the final minute and a half. 30-20 Westbrook at the break.

“Basketball’s always a game of adjustments,” Legage said. “Early on, we missed a couple of assignments. We knew Sirois was a good shooter. We paid a lot of attention to (Zach) Maturo, and Sirois and Hendrix, and Zac Manoogian got caught in some help positions where he over-rotated.”

Legage went on. “We tried to take control of the tempo of the game,” he said. “Through most of the first quarter and a good portion of the second quarter, we felt like they were controlling the tempo. We needed to do something to seize control. And that good defense led to better offense.”

“They went to pressure,” Trull said of Westbrook’s defensive adjustments, “and we struggled to break their pressure a little bit. That run gave them some momentum for the second half. We had a couple turnovers, and they just capitalized.”

Westbrook inched further and further ahead in the latter quarters. Manoogian hit another three, and four other Blazes – Jany, Loureiro, Kyle Champagne and Jack Haggerty – contributed in the third as the team outpaced Bonny Eagle 11-6. 

The Scots added another six in the fourth, including a three by Isaiah Peters, and slowed Westbrook down a bit as well, holding them to eight – but the damage was done, and the Blazes emerged the victors.

Hendrix logged the highest tally for Bonny Eagle on the afternoon, with 11. Sirois followed him with eight.

Trull patted Hendrix on the back, as well as enforcer Nick Thorne. “The first half, Will played all right inside. He finished well. Defensively, Nick played pretty well; he hustled his butt off. But we have a lot to work on.”

Westbrook, fourth in A South, moves to 9-3 on the season. They host Marshwood (No. 11 at 4-6) on Friday the 20th. Bonny Eagle drops to 3-8 in AA South; the Scots travel to Windham on Wednesday the 18th, then welcome Gorham on Friday.

Adam Birt can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter: @CurrentSportsME

Westbrooker Jeremiah Alado battles in midair for a loose ball.

Nick Thorne sidles up the lane, guarded closely by Zac Manoogian.

Bonny Eagle’s Isaiah Peters stands stalwart as Westbrooker Miece Loureiro shoulders toward the basket.

Westbrook’s Miece Loureiro began his team’s home bout vs. Bonny Eagle a little slow on Monday, then exploded in the second to ultimately post the game-high tally.

Westbrook’s Kyle Champagne wends between a pair of Bonny Eagle defenders, including Zach Maturo (right).

Connor Sirois ascends toward the net for Bonny Eagle in their road matchup vs. Westbrook on Monday.

Jack Haggerty reels in a rebound for Westbrook.

Looking to break into the key, Bonny Eagler Zach Maturo shoulders around Westbrook defender Bailey Sawyer.

Bonny Eagle’s Will Hendrix slides between airborne Westbrookers Bailey Sawyer (left) and Hamza Hanifi (right).

Will Hendrix refuses to let Zac Manoogian stop him from reaching the net.

Westbrooker Zac Manoogian looks to begin a drive from low on the outside.