BANGOR, Maine — The Lake Region Lakers scored the first 16 points of the second half to pull away from Ellsworth 63-47 and win their first Class B boys basketball state championship in 31 years Friday night.
The Naples-based Lakers led by just four points at intermission but cranked up the aggression at both ends of the court after the break to surge to a 44-24 lead before Nick Bagley finally scored Ellsworth’s first points of the second half with 2:55 left in the third quarter.
Senior forward Jack Lesure led Lake Region’s surge, shaking off three first-half fouls to score 12 of his 14 points after the break to go with two assists and three steals over the final two quarters.
“We just came out with aggressiveness and defense,” said Lesure of Lake Region’s second-half start. “That’s what we’ve been preaching all year long — defense, rebound and push the ball — and that’s what can happen when you do that.”
Nate Smith added 14 points and seven rebounds for coach John Mayo’s club, while Marcus Devoe scored 12 points for the Lakers, who finished the season at 20-2.
North regional tournament MVP Bruce St. Peter scored 15 points and grabbed nine rebounds for Ellsworth, which saw its 10-game winning streak ended and concluded its season with a 17-5 record.
“I think it was more of the quickness,” said Ellsworth coach Peter Austin of Lake Region’s play. “They do bang, but we do some banging of our own. But they’re very athletic, they’re long, and they can run up and down the floor and we’re not used to that.
“We’ve played some running teams before, but not nearly as athletic and as strong and as long.”
But when Ellsworth struggled shooting from the perimeter, the taller Lake Region front line was able to provide defensive assistance against St. Peter, limiting him to just two second-half field goals.
“They did a good job against him, but we didn’t do a very good job of getting him the ball, either,” said Austin. “I credit it that to them, they do a nice job defensively.
Two baskets out of the break by Nick Wandishin and a baseline jumper by DeVoe gave Lake Region a 34-24 lead two minutes into the third quarter, then Lesure got going.
He took a steal in for a three-point play, then followed another DeVoe jumper with a diving save of a loose ball to set up Smith for a three-point play to make it 42-24.
Lesure, the Class B South tourney MVP, then drove the lane for another basket to stretch the lead to 20 before Bagley finally answered for Ellsworth.
“They just turned up the heat and we just didn’t handle it very well,” said Austin. “We had some decent looks, we just couldn’t get that good shot because they close out fast. They’re fast and strong, and we had a problem with that.”
Lake Region held a 28-24 edge after an intensely played first half.
Bagley (nine points) opened the game with a 3-pointer for Ellsworth, and the Eagles maintained a 7-4 lead midway through the period.
But as the teams went to their benches, Lake Region began to assert its defense even more, moving out to a 19-14 lead at the end of the first quarter.
A layup by Brandon Palmer extended the Lakers’ lead to 21-14, but Ellsworth clawed back by intermission as St. Peter converted a three-point play and added two free throws during the late stages of the half.
St. Peter had 11 points and six rebounds at the break, while Smith paced Lake Region with eight points.
