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Season Preview: Boys’ basketball ahead of the game

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The Panthers bench during a scrimmage against Sandwich. / Photo by: Sue Moss

The Panthers return most of their production from last season’s 18-7 club.

For Whitman-Hanson Regional High boys’ basketball head coach Bob Rodgers, it’s like night and day going into this season compared to last winter.

Last year, the Panthers were tasked with finding a new starting five. This season, they return all of their key pieces from a Div. 2 South semifinals run.

“As a coach, it’s really about staying out of their way and letting them be as good as they are,” said Rodgers, who enters his 20th year at the helm of the boys’ basketball program.

Rodgers said with more experience comes heightened expectations.

“Now we’re veterans, most of the league knows most of the guys on the team — they know who they are and what they can do,” said Rodgers, whose team has qualified for the tournament for 11 straight seasons. “It’s a lot of fun because we’re way further ahead than we ordinarily would be this time of year so a lot of the stuff we’re doing is mostly reviewing. It’s great when you have a veteran team.”

Rodgers said while his starting five is likely going to fluctuate throughout the season, there are a few players almost set in stone, beginning with senior captain Stevie Kelly. The team’s returning MVP, he will once again man the point after averaging about 8.3 ppg and over 130 assists last season.

“Stevie Kelly is tough as nails and is one of the best competitors I’ve ever coached, he just competes hard all the time,” Rodgers said. “His basketball skill level has improved immensely. He shoots it really well and he’s a great passer.”

A 6-foot-7 swingman, senior captain Ben Rice will start after averaging close to 12 ppg and sinking close to 50 three-pointers last season.

“Ben is a great kid to coach, who has such a great demeanor,” Rodgers said. “Everyone on the team loves him. He can shoot it, he’s getting better diving the ball to the whole, he can rebound it and I think defensively he can make a difference with how long he is. He’s a weapon.”

Junior Cole LeVangie is also a weapon with an efficient inside and outside game for the Panthers.

“All Cole LeVangie has done it gotten better,” Rodgers said. “He’s going to be in the mix to start.”

While Rodgers said he expects his club to shoot the ball well from beyond the arc again this season, his team’s strength isn’t something that’s going to be found on the stat sheet.

“They all (the players) genuinely care about each other, they genuinely want their teammates to have success,” said the coach. “They can push each other in practice without other guys getting offended and they can play hard-nosed in practice without somebody feeling like they’re trying to show them up. That intangible of a team’s character, as I look at all the teams I’ve coached over my 30 years of coaching, I always look back and say, ‘Where were we on the character scale?’

“The teams that were high on the character scale always achieved higher than I thought they could. They’ve exceed what they can be. If this team achieve what they can be, sky’s the limit because just what they can be is really good.”

The Panthers return to the court Friday, Dec. 20 at 6:30 p.m. on the home against Plymouth North.

“Nothing is ever guaranteed in high school basketball,” Rodgers said. “It’s not played on paper, it’s played on the court. On paper, I like what we are, but we got to go play it on the court.”

Welcome to the club: Josh Rice joins his dad in Eastern Nazarene’s 1,000-point club

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Josh Rice (left) and his father Jon after the game. / Courtesy photo

Josh and Jon Rice become the first father-son duo in Eastern Nazarene College history to both score 1,000 points.

There was already plenty to celebrate.

Friday, Nov. 22 was both Jon Rice and his wife Nancy’s birthday. Their son Josh gave them a memorable present — at the place they first met.

Josh, a senior swingman on Eastern Nazarene’s men’s basketball team and 2016 Whitman-Hanson Regional High graduate, entered his game that night against Worcester Polytechnic Institute on the verge of school history. He needed 14 points to join his dad in the college’s 1,000-point club — and to become the first father-son duo in program history to do it.

After hitting four quick 3-pointers, Josh was just two points away. Then, with 5:17 left in the first half, he got a screen, a pass from his teammate Noah Cheney, spotted up from the top of the key and connected on another one from beyond the arc. This one, pushed him over the 1,000-point mark.

“I definitely don’t think I could have asked for a better present,” said his father Jon, who ranks 18th all-time on Eastern Nazarene men’s basketball’s scoring list with 1,226 points that he scored from 1986-90. “And to do it at my alma mater — I’m so proud of Josh.”

Said Josh: “I’m definitely proud of it, especially since it’s the same school that my dad went to. He’s a big reason I went here. It‘s nice for us to have and be able to share that forever together. It was a great feeling — especially for him to be there.”

And it was appropriate for Josh, a Hanson native, to reach the milestone with a 3-pointer. He’s connected on 199 of them so far during his college career.

Josh said his father molded him into the shooter he is today.

“He didn’t let me shoot threes until I was in high school,” Josh said. “He taught me how to shoot, the form, everything.”

Jon coached his son in town and AAU basketball from fourth grade until his sophomore year of high school. Josh credits his father for helping foster him with a love for the game.

“My dad loves sports, especially basketball,” Josh said. “His history at ENC and his passion and his love and knowledge of the game really grew that passion in me.”

It began when Josh was in elementary school and his father Jon was the head boys’ basketball coach at Hingham High.

“I would bring him with me to practices and games,” the elder Rice said. “There was one time, I remember coaching a game in Weymouth and we had just enough seats for everybody on the team and the last seat was for the water cooler. Josh was in second or third grade at the time. There was one of those big, heavy water coolers, and he was like, ‘Well, dad said I could sit on the bench this game, so I’m just going to move this water cooler.’

“So, he attempts to move the water cooler and it falls over and it floods the court, so that was certainly an everlasting memory.”

Jon eventually gave up his spot on the Hingham bench so he could coach his son.

“It was one of the toughest decisions I had to make,” Jon said. “It was hard, but I don’t regret a second of it. I cherish the memories I have coaching Josh and my other two boys, as well.”

But the memories that stick out to Josh occurred in the driveway, where he and his younger brother Tyler, a former starter on the W-H basketball team, who graduated in 2018, played against their youngest brother Ben, who is a senior on the Panthers now, and their father.

“I just remember how intense those games would be going down the stretch, being like 20-20 and the first to 21 wins,” Josh recalled. “Losing to my brother and my dad motivated me to work even harder.”

It’s what happened after the game when no one was watching that defines Josh’s work ethic.

“The next day, I’d be out working on the shot I missed in those games,” Josh said. “Those games were so valuable growing up. We all wanted to win so badly.”

Josh entered this season just 40 points away from the 1,000-point mark. His offseason was rigorous, but typical. 

“I would work out wherever I could,” Josh explained. “When Whitman-Hanson was open, I’d get in there when I could, I’d drive up some nights to ENC. I also work at the YMCA in Hanover, as a camp counselor, so I’d go early and get a workout in, and then after my shift was up I’d get shots up.”

His drive, determination, and prowess on the court are a few aspects of Josh that stick out to ENC head men’s basketball coach Scott Polsgrove. They explain why he’s a captain for the Lions.

“He’s a great leader for us,” Polsgrove said. “His teammates all know that he cares about them, and he’s a fun, loving, player who has an infectious attitude and energy about him that draws people to him. We rely on him heavily.”

While Josh finishes his ENC career, he’ll forever have a memory in the college both he and his father called home.

“I’ll be able to take my kids to an ENC game one day and say, ‘That’s your grandfather and that’s me,’” Josh said.

Hanson’s Sweeney ready to tackle freshman campaign for Springfield College football team

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Whitman-Hanson Regional High alum Quinn Sweeney is a freshman on the Springfield College football team.

Growing up, Quinn Sweeney’s father Keith always had a simple message for him when it came to the college selection process.

“He just said to pick the school that was the right fit for me,” said Quinn, who hails from Hanson.

So, that’s what he did, and his choice just happened to be Springfield College, where his father achieved all-star status as a defensive back. He’d also get the opportunity to play football there, but education was a bigger factor in Quinn’s decision.

“Toward the end of my sophomore year, I decided I wanted to become a physical education teacher,” Quinn said. “We researched a bunch of schools and Springfield and Bridgewater [State University] were my top choices. I felt most comfortable at Springfield. Following in his footsteps is like icing on the cake.”

His offseason was busy.

“[I] lifted three times a week and did conditioning three times a week,” Quinn said. “The strength and conditioning staff is really big on recovery and giving your body time to recover from workouts. I was lucky to get to play in the Shriners [Football Classic] game in June, so that was kind of like a mini camp to get back into the football mode.”

Whitman-Hanson Regional High football coach Mike Driscoll often lauded Quinn, who was a Patriot League All-Star last fall as a senior, during his playing days for the Panthers, coining him the “energy guy” and an essential part of the “heart and soul” of the line at either his end position on defense or post at tackle on offense.

“He loves football,” Driscoll said of Quinn last August. “He’s just the type of kid who can get off the ball and he’s worked on a lot of his quickness.”

Now, as Quinn readies to kick off his freshman campaign on the Pride, he’s is taking it one practice at a time.

“Preseason camp goes until Sept. 4,” he said. “I’m just trying to get better every day and put together a string of good practices. If I do that, everything will take care of itself.”

Springfield begins the season Saturday, Sept. 7 on the road against Western New England at 1 p.m.

“I have been given an amazing opportunity and I want to take advantage of everything the school has to offer,” Quinn said. “Football-wise, I’d love to be part of the team — brotherhood is what we call it here. Just do my part to help our team have success.”

Season Review: Boys’ basketball courts success

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Photo by: Sue Moss

The boys’ basketball team finished the year 18-7, including a pair of playoff wins.

Once again, the Whitman-Hanson Regional High boys’ basketball team was tasked with replacing its entire starting five at the outset of the season. Once again, it was no problem as the Panthers marched to their 11th straight tournament appearance.

“It sets the foundation for future teams to build on,” said 19-year head coach Bob Rodgers, whose team finished the year 18-7. “It’s now an expectation that we’re gonna make the state tournament.”

However, unlike last season, the Panthers advanced in the tournament, winning their first two games as the eight seed. In the first round of the Div. 2 South playoffs, they knocked off ninth-ranked Dennis-Yarmouth, 60-57, followed by a win over top-seeded Randolph, 60-51, in the quarterfinals.

“I didn’t really know what to expect going into the season,” Rodgers said. “It was really a case of a really balanced team. We didn’t have anyone who scored 15 or 20 points per game. I couldn’t be more happy than what this team accomplished and how we grew from the beginning of the year to where we were at the end.”

In their third trip to the semifinals in the past four seasons, they succumbed to second-ranked New Mission, 79-70, in overtime.

The Panthers were indeed led by a balanced effort on offense with five players contributing 5.5 ppg or more.

“We didn’t have any inside presence, in terms of pounding it into a post player, but we really got to the hoop really well,” Rodgers said. “We had a lot of guys that could drive and knock down the 3 really well.”

The Panthers certainty did knock down the 3 ball really well. After connecting on just 149 triples last season, one that Rodgers coined an apparition, they sunk around 200 this year.

Junior Ben Rice scorer led the 3-point barrage with around 50. He also led the team in scoring with over 11.6 ppg.

“Ben is an absolute gym rat,” Rodgers said. “He’s always in the gym working on his shot. He had steady improvement in his game in terms of becoming a better defender and becoming someone we can rely on to do more than just shoot the ball.”

With an ability to get into the lane for a quick two and knock down a shot from beyond the arc, sophomore Cole LeVangie produced close to 10 ppg, which was good for second on the team.

“He can handle the ball and can shoot it,” Rodgers said. “He’s very unselfish and plays a total team basketball game.”

Junior Stevie Kelly was a sparkplug at the point for the Panthers’ offense, delivering over 130 assists on the season and averaging right around 8.3 ppg.

“He’s just a hard-nosed, tough player who can affect the game on both ends of the court,” Rodgers said. “He’s a terrific defensive player. He’s physically stronger than most guards he goes up against. He was an outstanding player for us this year.”

Rodgers said he knows exactly what he is looking for from his players this offseason.

“It’s going to take the entire group to committing to getting stronger and basically playing the game together, and still improving our shooting and still improving our basketball skill,” said the coach. “It’s going to depend on which guys are bringing guys into the gym with them, not just going into the gym themselves.”

Pair of Panther hoop teams headed to postseason … again

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Both Whitman-Hanson basketball teams will play in the tournament.

For the third straight season, Whitman-Hanson Regional High’s boys’ and girls’ basketball teams have clinched playoff berths.

This is also the fourth time in the last six years both W-H basketball programs have earned a spot in the postseason.

11 STRAIGHT FOR THE BOYS

Photo by: Sue Moss

It’s almost always a sure bet veteran coach Bob Rodgers will have his team in the postseason no matter who it’s tasked with replacing at the season’s outset.

The boys clinched their spot on Jan. 29 with a 67-57 victory over Scituate at home, giving them their 11th win of the season.

“I’m always happy for the kids when we clinch a tourney spot because it’s such a special experience,” said Rodgers.

Senior captain Joey DePina paced the Panthers (16-6) with 16 points, while junior point guard Stevie Kelly tossed in 11.

“Joey DePina has been the heart and soul of our team,” Rodgers said. “His leadership has been instrumental in our team’s success. He is such a great teammate who is loved and respected by everyone on the club.

“Stevie Kelly has been the driving force behind our team this year. He has grown so much as a player and as a person. We are very proud of him.”

The Panthers have been buoyed by a balanced attack all season.

“Our depth is definitely our advantage,” Rodgers said. “We play more kids than most teams and while some may criticize that approach, we feel like having as many kids as possible contributing we create a culture where everyone has motivation to practice hard every day.”

Rodgers said his club knows exactly what it has to work on.

“Overall our team toughness and rebounding is an important part of the game that we have to improve,” said the coach.

The Panthers will aim to keep it simple in the playoffs.

“The only goal is to win that first game,” Rodgers said. “You can’t get too far ahead of yourself. Every team in the tournament can beat anyone, so you just have to stay focused on the game in front of you.”

GIRLS HEADED BACK

Photo by: Sue Moss

It’s taken a complete team effort for the girls’ basketball team to clinch a spot in the tournament for the third year in a row.

Jenna Olem’s club (12-8) picked up its 10th victory Feb. 13 with a 53-44 triumph over Silver Lake behind a monster 18-point, 15-rebound effort from senior captain Kathryn Dunn.

“Every team sets out to clinch a tournament spot,” Olem said. “As the season wore on I knew it was definitely within reach and it was just a matter of when.”

After losing senior captain and point guard Erin Leahy in the first practice of the year, the Panthers have been piecing it together.

“A big thing at beginning of season was stressing our depth and players filling in necessary roles when called on,” Olem said. “We’ve had big nights from a different players at different points in the season. When different players are able to stand out on different nights, it is a strength to our team.”

W-H has relied heavily on its defense (allowing 41 PPG), as its offense has been inconsistent at times, averaging 53 PPG in wins and 35 PPG in losses.

“We’re working on getting off to better starts offensively in the first quarter, knowing how to close out teams when we have a lead late and rebounding,” Olem said.

The goal?

“Pull an upset in the first-round tournament said,” Olem said.

Kelly sparks Whitman-Hanson boys’ basketball to win

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Stevie Kelly calls out a play.

The junior scored 10 points to go with six rebounds and six assists in the comeback win.

Whitman-Hanson Regional High junior Stevie Kelly is known for his defensive prowess on the soccer field, but he’s making a name for himself on the hardwood at point guard. 

Kelly opened up his whole toolbox Friday night and the Panthers needed every bit of it to fend off Patriot League foe Silver Lake, 56-54.

“It was a pretty big win,” Kelly said. “Every Patriot League game is big for us.” 

In a fourth quarter that the Panthers (8-2) entered down, 40-37, it was the 5-foot-10 Kelly, who scored five of his 10 points in the final frame to complement six rebounds and six assists on the night, right in the middle of the comeback.

With 7:33 remaining, Kelly drained a triple from the top of the arc, evening the score at 40.

After senior Cole Lewis (10 points) shot the Panthers ahead, 49-47, with a pair of 3-pointers, the Lakers (3-5) would pull even before Kelly passed to a streaking Rian Schwede inside the lane and he laid it in for two.

Clinging to a one-point lead late, Kelly jump cut into the lane for two, giving the Panthers a 55-52 lead, which was enough. 

“He’s a tenacious player for sure,” said W-H head coach Bob Rodgers of Kelly. “He really gets after it. He’s a tremendous defender and a great leader on the floor. He had some big buckets for us down the stretch.”

With the help of six points in the first quarter from sophomore Cole LeVangie (team-high 16 points), the Panthers jumped out to a 18-10 lead after one. 

The Lakers proceeded to outscore W-H, 18-8, in the following quarter to claim a 28-26 halftime edge. 

Kelly sparked the Panthers out of halftime, motoring to the hoop for two, while picking up a foul in the process. His free throw put the Panthers up, 29-28. 

Stevie Kelly

Later in the frame, Kelly drove into the lane and kicked it out to a wide-open Ben Rice on the right side, who drained a three, giving the Panthers a 37-35 lead. 

“It helps (me) with all the shooters we have,” Kelly said. “They work really hard in the offseason.”

The Panthers will visit Hanover next Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. 

“We just got to get tougher around the hoop and play harder,” Kelly said. 

Leahy heads into break on high note for UMass Dartmouth

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Sean Leahy. / Courtesy photo

Former W-H basketball standout Sean Leahy is starting to find his rhythm for UMass Dartmouth.

Sean Leahy couldn’t have scripted a better way to head into the winter break.

In UMass Dartmouth men’s basketball’s final game of the semester, the 6-foot-5, 180-pound freshman forward from Hanson got his second start and erupted for a career-high 17 points in a 90-75 victory over Tufts on Dec. 10.

“He shot the ball well from the perimeter,” UMass Dartmouth head coach Brian Baptiste said.

Leahy connected on five of seven field goals, which included an 80-percent showing (four of five) from beyond the arc. The outing earned him Little East Conference Rookie of the Week honors in men’s basketball.

“It definitely feels good,” Leahy said. “That was a big win as a team and a big win over Tufts, so as a team it felt great and hopefully it will give us some momentum in the second half of the season.”

It’s been a work in progress this winter for Leahy, who’s battling back from two broken wrists. In the Corsairs’ first six games, Leahy averaged just 13 minutes per game, but over their last four outings he’s averaged 31.5 minutes per contest, including back-to-back starts.

“He’s been slowly coming along because of his injuries, and when he comes into the game he’s increased his minutes as the season’s gone on,” Baptiste explained. “He’s just playing better and better as the season moves forward.”

Leahy, a nursing major and the 2017-18 Patriot League Keenan Division MVP, said the adjustment to the college game has been a battle, for sure.

“Everyone up here is a little bit quicker, a little bit stronger, but definitely I now have to think about how I play defense, how you slide,” Leahy said. “It doesn’t come as easy as in high school.”

However, he’s using a few lessons learned at the high school level in his adjustment.

“I would definitely say paying attention to the little details and how you approach drills and how you play,” said Leahy of the lessons learned in high school he’s carried over into the collegiate rank. “And then probably how you play the game and not cutting corners.”

Baptiste said Leahy’s top asset is his understanding of the game.

“He makes smart decisions,” Baptiste said. “He’s added a great deal to the team. He’s got a lot of versatility. He’s a big man, he can shoot from the perimeter, he can handle the ball like a guard, he passes well, he rebounds well, he’s got a big upside.”

Leahy said he’s going to spend a majority of his break in the gym before the 7-4 Corsairs resume play Jan. 3 against Becker.

“I’m looking to get a little stronger so I can hang in the paint with those bigger guys, but that’ll take time,” he said.

Baptiste said he’s looking forward to what the next three and a half years will bring for Leahy.

“I expect him to be an outstanding player for us,” said the coach.

Season Preview: Boys’ basketball team aims to form own identity

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The Panthers during practice. / Photo by: Sue Moss

The Panthers are tasked with replacing all five starters for the second time in three seasons.

Another season, another opportunity for the Whitman-Hanson Regional High boys’ basketball team.

It’s a chance for it to make its own mark in the history of a program that, over each of the past six seasons, has won at least 16 games and has qualified for the last 10 Div. 2 South Sectional tournaments, while making a pair of trips to the TD Garden for the state semifinals.

After the graduation of all five starters from last season’s 16-5 team, the starting lineup – similar to 2016 – is blank after the first week of practice, just waiting for five players to emerge.

“We graduated everybody off of that [2015]-2016 team,” said 19-year head coach Bob Rodgers. “The only kids that had any kind of experience at all were [Luke] Tamulevich and Nikko Raftes, and both of those guys, their minutes were in a very complementary role.”

That team went on to win the league title and compete in the state semifinals at the TD Garden.

“It’s just a matter of getting the guys on the same page and trying to figure out what we have in terms of assets,” Rodgers said.

Also similarly to the 2016-17 team, Rodgers said he expects the Panthers to return to being a good shooting team from inside and outside the arc. Last season’s team struggled with its ability to knock down shots.

“I think you always have to go with whatever your personnel strength is,” Rodgers said. “Last year, going inside was something that was an advantage for us. This year we do have a lot more shooters, more guys that can hit the outside shot, so it’s something where we’ll look a lot more like the teams of 2016 [and] ’17 than 2018.”

Sean Leahy, now playing at UMass Dartmouth, willed the Panthers to many victories last season, averaging nearly 20 points and 10 rebounds a contest en route to Patriot League Keenan Division MVP honors. Fellow senior captain and Patriot League All-Star Jacob Hanson-Bartlett pumped in 12.3 points a game. Both of their production will be missed. Rodgers said it’s really hard for him to pinpoint who will shoulder the load on offense this season.

“One of the beauties of this roster is we have a lot of guys that can score,” Rodgers said. “Colby Ahern can shoot it. Ben Rice can. Stevie Kelly. John Zeidan.”

Of the Panthers’ returnees, senior guard Tajh Hunter has the most experience under his belt, having accumulated 381 minutes on the floor last winter. Senior guard Cole Lewis and junior guard Max Borgen are the only other two returnees with over 200 minutes of varsity playing experience. Senior guard Joey DePina, who received just 90 varsity minutes last season, will captain the team.

Rodgers said that while he isn’t returning a ton of experience at the varsity level, he can’t complain about the work put in by most of his players over the offseason.

“They’re in the gym all the time,” Rodgers said. “From the time the season ended last year to where we are right now, you see the improvement. So many of these guys are just head and shoulders of where they were when the season ended.”

Rodgers said he believes his team’s strength is its togetherness, and his players will deal with adversity as a unit.

“They’re such good kids that they get along really well and support each other,” Rodgers said. “I think they’re ready to grow together and help each other grow and deal with the pressures that are different on varsity than JV.”

Rodgers said he’s focused on getting everyone working toward the same mission, while improving along the way.

“We have a really young team,” he said. “Really the goal right now is just to try to get everybody on the same page, so that they’re playing the style that we believe in which is playing together, unselfish, build new character and let the record take care of itself.”

The Panthers open the season Tuesday, Dec. 11 at home against league foe Quincy at 6:30 p.m.

“I’ve never made predictions of where we’ll finish,” Rodgers said. “All I can say is we’ll play the game the right way. No matter what the record is, we’ll practice hard every day and we’ll get better every day.”

Season Review: Exceeding the expectations: Boys’ basketball found its rhythm in tough season

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The boys’ basketball team before a Feb. 16 game against Quincy. / Photo by: Sue Moss

The Whitman-Hanson Regional High boys’ basketball team made the tournament for the 10th straight season, won at least 16 games for the sixth straight winter and captured its third straight division crown.

The 2017-18 season didn’t come together the way 18-year Whitman-Hanson Regional High boys’ basketball head coach Bob Rodgers was expecting, but it came together in a way that he hadn’t envisioned.

“We were able to accomplish some things that I didn’t think would be on the table for us,” Rodgers said.

The Panthers went 16-5, which marked the sixth straight season in which they won at least 16 games, made the Division 2 South Sectional tournament for their 10th straight campaign and grabbed a share of their third consecutive Patriot League Keenan Division title and fourth in the past five years.

“Winning the league championship with Hingham was really a testament to how hard the kids worked and how they believed even though we hit that tough stretch in the middle of the season,” Rodgers said.

In that tough stretch to which Rodgers referred, were three straight losses to Hingham (71-45), Cardinal Spellman (78-76) and Quincy (55-54) that dropped the Panthers to 5-4. But, they turned it around and rode a 10-game winning streak until Division 1 Bridgewater-Raynham topped them, 60-45, in an exclusion game for W-H. Perhaps W-H’s most impressive victory during the winning streak was a 68-51 triumph at Hingham. The Harbormen had dealt the Panthers their worst regular-season loss (71-45) in more than 10 years four weeks prior.

“I think what really happened at that point was the guys were humbled and realized that nobody is giving Whitman-Hanson anything because it says Whitman-Hanson across your chest, and they started to work harder and we kind of found a way,” Rodgers said. “In reality, because Sean Leahy put the team on his shoulders and was just an immense player that was a difference-maker in a lot of the games, especially that game in Hingham. I told him before that game, ‘If you’re an MVP, if you’re a league MVP, you got to go play like it because the other guy that’s vying for league MVP is on the other team.'”

Leahy poured in a game-high 25 points and retrieved 10 rebounds in the win en route to being tabbed Patriot League Keenan Division MVP.

However, in the playoffs, the sixth-seeded Panthers succumbed to 11th-seeded Nauset, 65-56, in the first round.

“We didn’t shoot it well,” Rodgers said. “We got plenty of shots, but we just didn’t shoot it well. We didn’t have that rhythm of guys that could stick it, so if Sean [Leahy] wasn’t scoring we were going to have difficulty putting points on the board.

“The other thing in that Nauset game [is] we made a couple little runs, but we weren’t able to get stops. We weren’t able to get the big bucket down one end and the get the big stop down the other end.”

Shooting, which had always been a strength of the Panthers over the years, –was an issue all season long, forcing them to form a new identity on offense.

“Jake Hanson-Bartlett shot it well, Cole Lewis shot it well, Bryan Tyrie shot it well, but other than that we really didn’t shoot the basketball well as a team,” Rodgers explained. “That’s unusual for us, that’s unusual for Whitman-Hanson basketball. So, we were able to get to the basket a little more, get some stuff off of our defense, so that was really the biggest difference. We had to score points in ways that we really didn’t do in years past.”

While there was no trip to TD Garden like there had been the previous two seasons for the Panthers, they exceeded what Rodgers had for expectations.

“I thought when we lost [Lucas Franklin, Nikko Raftes and Luke Tamulevich] last year, I knew how important they were to our team,” Rodgers said of his former captains. “We only lost three guys, but that was three-fifths of the starting lineup and they didn’t come out a lot last year.”

The Panthers will once again have a significant number of holes to plug next season with the departures of senior captains and league all-stars Leahy (19.7 PPG, 9.2 RPG) and Hanson-Bartlett (12.3 PPG, 7.1 RPG), fellow senior and league all-star Josh Genereux (8.7 PPG), and classmates Tyler Rice (5.1 PPG) and Tyrie (5.9 PPG). But, they’re no stranger to that.

“We won’t have a lot of guys that have played a lot of varsity minutes, but we’ll have some,” Rodgers said. “And then we have some good guys in the JV that if they put in their time and get in the weight room and really spend the next month months getting better, I still think we’ll be one of the better teams.”

Tournament hoop dreams: Boys, girls in postseason

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Photos by: Sue Moss

This is the second straight season, and third time in the last five years both W-H basketball programs have earned a spot in the postseason.

The Whitman-Hanson Regional High boys’ and girls’ basketball teams have punched their tickets to the tournament.

This is the second straight season, and third time in the last five years both W-H basketball programs have earned a spot in the postseason.

The boys’ team (14-4, 12-2 Patriot League) clinched its berth with a 70-53 rout of Plymouth North at home on Friday, Feb. 2, giving it its 10th win of the season.

The Panthers were in command for much of the contest, leading by double digits essentially all evening, but did have to thwart a Blue Eagles charge that sliced their lead to seven in order to claim victory.

“After the game, I congratulated the kids on checking off one of their goals but [said] that we had several more to go,” W-H boys’ basketball head coach Bob Rodgers said.

In the victory, senior captain Sean Leahy led the way with 19 points and fellow senior captain Jacob Hanson-Bartlett chipped in 12.

Not only did it give the Panthers their 10th win of the winter, but it also marked the 10th straight season the boys’ program has qualified for the Division 2 South Sectional tournament.

“I’m a firm believer that each team has the potential to motivate the players of tomorrow,” Rodgers said of the consistent success. “When a young player comes into the gym and watches our guys play, it is my hope that they will go home dreaming of one day being on that court.  If enough kids in town have that dream I’m confident enough of them will find a way to make it a reality.”

But as Rodgers stated, the Panthers, who have clinched two straight Patriot League Keenan Division titles, and been to two straight Division 2 state semifinals, their eyes are on a much bigger prize.

“We just want to keep playing fundamental basketball with a great deal of intensity,” Rodgers said. “Hopefully that translates into enough wins to earn a home playoff game.”

Girls follow suit 

As for the girls’ team (12-7, 8-6), it had a little more work to do if it wanted to head back to the tournament. Playing a 21-game regular season, the Panthers had to win at least 11 of their tilts.

Down 24-21 at halftime Tuesday, Feb. 6, on the road against Pembroke, the Panthers weren’t about to fold over.  Two key aspects of their campaign this season have been their depth and defense, both of which played a key role in the second half, as they held the Titans to 12 points in the second half to claim a 51-36 victory, securing their spot in the playoffs.

During that second-half charge, junior captain Erin Leahy (11 points and 10 rebounds) secured a double-double, fellow junior captain Kathryn Dunn caused the Titans fits on the defensive end of the court, classmate Olivia Johnson sank two key 3-pointers, junior Leah Badger tallied seven points and sophomore Olivia Martin connected on two pivotal left-handed layups.

“The number one thing we wanted was to come out with urgency from tipoff,” W-H girls’ basketball head coach Jenna Olem said. “It was awesome to see a bunch of players who work so hard during the week step up and contribute to the win.

“At the beginning of the game, I talked about the adversity that we went through in January and how it kind of led us to where we are now. To appreciate the process of getting to this point and going out and getting a big win against a tough team on the road was something to be proud of. The girls talked about how they think team chemistry is their biggest overall strength and it was on full display Tuesday night.”

This marks the second straight season the Panthers have qualified for the tournament. But, there is a wrinkle in that this year as they were moved up to Division 1 over the offseason, so they will have to get past some top-tier competition if they hope to advance come March.

“I mean, once you get into the state tournament I think all of the teams are tough,” Olem said. “Obviously, D1 consists of the powerhouses, but the Patriot League has some very tough teams that we face twice every season with Duxbury, Quincy, Hingham etc., so we will obviously have to elevate our game and hope we are playing our best possible ball the rest of the way.”

Up next

W-H and Quincy are the only two Patriot League schools to have qualified both basketball teams for the postseason.

The girls continue competition Thursday, Feb. 15 on the road against Quincy at 6:30 p.m.

The boys will be back in action Friday, Feb. 16 at home against Quincy at 6:30 p.m.