BANGOR, Maine — Calais High School basketball fans call Tyler Niles “the beast.”
On Saturday night, the senior forward demonstrated why he has earned that nickname.
Niles scored 18 of his game-high 29 points during the last 10 minutes, including sinking nine of 10 free throws in overtime, to lift top-seeded Calais to a 60-57 victory over No. 7 Orono in the Eastern Maine Class C basketball championship game at the Cross Insurance Center in Bangor.
“It was really nerve-wracking, I’m still shaking,” said Niles, a left-handed shooter who was chosen the Darling’s/BDN Most Valuable Player. “I just didn’t want my basketball season to end, I wanted to go for that gold (basketball).”
Coach Chris Woodside’s Blue Devils (19-2), who claimed the program’s first EM crown since 2009, face Western Maine winner Dirigo of Dixfield (19-2) in next Saturday’s 8:45 p.m. state title game in Bangor.
Coach Jason Coleman’s Red Riots (14-8) gave Calais everything it could handle, but could not overcome Niles and the Blue Devils’ relentless trapping defense, which helped force many of Orono’s 25 turnovers.
Niles’ performance, which also included nine rebounds, was especially important because classmate Kyle Johnson (6 points) was hampered by foul trouble and fouled out late in the fourth quarter.
Senior Andre Paul contributed 11 points and four rebounds for the Blue Devils, while classmate Nathan Newell added five points and four rebounds. Sophomore Travon Rhodes and freshman Zach Lola also played important roles.
“We believed in each other,” Johnson said. “When I went out, I looked at Tyler, Andre, Nathan and told them to go get it, because I was 100 percent confident in those guys.”
Orono received 17 points each from senior Damian Heeger and inspired sophomore Keenan Collett, who pulled down eight rebounds. Nate DeSisto chipped in with six points.
The Red Riots sent the game into overtime after Jake Koffman made one of two free throws with 48.7 seconds to play. Calais got a good last look at the basket on a drive by Niles as time wound down, but the shot rimmed out.
In overtime, the Blue Devils did all of their damage from the foul line. Niles made his first eight shots and Paul added two to help overcome three turnovers.
That came after Calais went 4-for-16 from the line in the second half.
“I’ve been around this team and nothing surprises me,” Woodside said. “I didn’t know how it was going to happen, and at times it looked like we did everything we could to not win, but I just knew that we would find a way to win the game.”
Orono hung tough and got back within three when Jackson Coutts drained a 3-pointer with 2.5 seconds left. And the Riots got the ball back without any time ticking off because of a team-control foul.
However, DeSisto’s 3-pointer from the left wing was off the mark as the horn sounded.
“We had two (key) possessions in overtime. We turned it over then fouled, they made both foul shots,” Coleman said. “Then we get to the line, have a chance to get it to a one-possession game, and we go 1-for-2 and foul again, so it stays a two-possession game, and that was it.”
The game featured an often physical and frantic pace that resulted from Calais’ zone pressure all over the floor. The youthful Red Riots countered with an aggressive, physical style spearheaded by Collett, Koffman and Coutts.
Calais had built an eight-point lead in the first quarter, but Collett and Heeger were the catalysts as Orono went up by as many as eight in the third quarter.
Ultimately, the Blue Devils’ experience, with four senior starters, may have been the difference. Only one Riots senior played significant minutes, while four sophomores and a junior carried much of the load.