ELLSWORTH, Maine — The George Stevens Academy boys basketball team can at times be an offensive juggernaut.
But when the two-time defending Class C state champions from Blue Hill needed a boost early in the fourth quarter of Friday night’s game against Class B contender Ellsworth at Katsiaficas Gymnasium, their defense came to the forefront as the Eagles pulled away for a 70-54 victory.
“We hadn’t played that many close, intense games in the last five or so, so this was good for us,,” said GSA coach Dwayne Carter, whose team earned its 15th consecutive victory to improve its record to 15-1.
“We kept composed. They were trying to put pressure on us but I think it worked to our advantage.”
Senior guard Taylor Schildroth led the way with 29 points, while junior forward Percy Zentz scored 14 points and senior center Max Mattson finished with 12 points, 18 rebounds and six blocked shots.
“When Max is in there people do not want to shoot in the paint. I wouldn’t either,” said Schildroth. “It makes it easier against a good-shooting 3-point team because we know we can stick to our guys and when someone does drive, seven or eight times out of 10 Max is going to clean it up.”
Mattson’s younger brother, sophomore guard Caden Mattson, added 11 points and a strong defensive effort that limited Ellsworth’s leading scorer, Zach Harris, to eight points.
“We knew we had to play Zach Harris really tight, and Caden’s a very good defender,” said Carter. “He stuck with him really well, and any time he did get by Max was in the paint to help.”
Dylan Taplin, one of six Ellsworth players recognized before the game during Senior Night activities, led Ellsworth with 12 points while Bradley Smith added nine as the Eagles — who entered the night ranked sixth in Class B North — had their six-game winning streak halted.
“They’re very good around the rim, but Max did a really good job of altering their shots,” said Carter.
Taplin scored six points from the lane during the third quarter when the hosts narrowed a 31-17 halftime deficit to as little as six at 45-39 on a on a Devin Grindle free throw before Stefan Simmons beat the buzzer with an offensive putback to give GSA an eight-point edge at the end of the period.
Ellsworth was still within 51-42 after a 3-pointer by Harris after an offensive rebound by Jackson Curtis with 5:44 remaining, but Max Mattson scored after grabbing an offensive rebound and Schildroth and Caden Mattson combined for three late steals that turned into instant offense as GSA pushed its lead back out to 64-49 with 2:20 left.
“When we can play tight defense and get some steals, fast-break layups are the easiest points,” Schildroth said.
Schildroth scored 18 points — including four 3-pointers — during the first half as GSA built an early double-digit lead.
Max Mattson’s defense was of equal value early, as he blocked six shots and altered several others during the game’s first 16 minutes.
“We knew there were going to be runs, especially here where it’s always intense and you can get up 15 and then suddenly it’s back to seven,” said Schildroth. “So we just came out and tried to establish the paint and get fast-break points and do what we had to do to contain their runs.”
