2 Mass. Players Headed to NE-10

Grassa and Campbell Make Commitments

The Northeast-10 is considered one of the most competitive Division-II conferences in the country. Two local players are headed to NE-10 schools in the fall in Jasper Grassa and David Campbell.

Grassa (pictured above) is one of the higher rated players in the MIAA Class of 2010. he is a 6'0" guard from Lynn Classical HS and the Boston Warriors AAU club. Grassa has excellent strength at the guard position and the ability to handle the basketball well.

Campbell meanwhile is a Madison Park HS product. He was part of a very talented Cardinals squad that went deep into the Mass. Division-I tournament before falling to state champs Central Catholic. Campbell is a 6'6" big man who runs the floor well and is physical inside.

Rotary Twin State Basketball Classic 2010 NH Teams

Boys and Girls Teams Announced

From NHBCO:
New Hampshire Basketball Coaches Organization President Mike Soucy announced today the rosters for the Team NH 2010 teams that will compete against Vermont in the 30th Annual Merchants Bank - Rotary Twin State Basketball Classic to be played Saturday July 10th at the Patrick Gymnasium at University of Vermont on the Burlington campus.

Players must graduate from their respective high school in June 2010. Coaches are selected by their peers on a rotating basis from Class L to Class S. Players are selected upon recommendations of high school coaches, play in the Granite Games senior all-star event and an open try out.

Boys Roster
G Sheldon Benson, Class I, Pembroke Academy
G Alex Burt, Class L, Dover High School;
C Kevin Cressy, Class I, Merrimack Valley High School;
G Cormac Fitzpatrick, Class L, Manchester Memorial High School;
G Cam Heffron, Class I, Kearsarge Regional High School;
G Alex LaRosa, Class L, Salem High School;
G Sean Martin, Class M, Conant Regional High School;
F Tom McDonnell, Class I, Oyster River High School;
G Jake Nelson, Class L, Nashua South High School
F Jimmy Peard, Class M, Conant Regional High School
C Tom Poitras, Class I, Bow High School
G Alex Pratt, Class L, Nashua North High School;
F Scott St Lawrence, Class L, Bishop Guertin High School;
F Dalton Scott, Class S, Colebrook Academy;
Head Coach EJ Perry, Class L, Salem High School;
Asst. Coach Nate Camp, Class I, Kearsarge Regional High School;
Asst. Coach Mike Dunham, Class M, Campbell Regional High School

Girls Roster
F Rosa Drummond Class I, Portsmouth High School;
F Jordan Ferland Class M, Fall Mountain Regional High School;
G AJ Guidi, Class L, Pinkerton Academy;
G Kyla Gustaveson, Class L, Nashua North High School;
F Katherine Menge, Class I, Hanover High School;
G Callie King, Class L, Londonderry High School;
G Skyler Makkinje, Class M, Hillsboro-Deering High School;
G Briahnna Metcalf, Class S, Pittsfield High School;
F Emily Pelletier, Class S, Groveton High School;
F Anna Prohl, Class I, Kearsarge Regional High School;
C Emily Siegart, Class L, Winnacunnet High School;
G Samantha Walker, Class L, Manchester Central High School;
C Camryn Warner, Class L, Keene High School;
Head Coach Dave Nichols, Class I, Oyster River High School;
Asst. Coach Nick Hill, Class M, Conant Regional High School;
Asst. Coach Kate Nichols, Class I, Oyster River High School;
Girls Team Supervisor Jess Clark, Class L, Dover High School.

Practices for the two squads do not start until following completion of spring high school sports and graduation activities. Teams are limited to eight practices/scrimmages before traveling to Vermont in July. The New Hampshire Basketball Coaches Organization underwrite fifty percent of player expenses and the Burlington Sunrise Rotary Club covers the balance through program sales. All proceeds go to Rotary charities.

Latest Player Tape

Bishop Guertin's Logan Kesty

Logan Kesty is a 6'2" two-guard in the Class of 2012. He played his freshman and sophomore years at Trinity HS (Manchester, NH), but next fall will be transferring to Bishop Guertin HS (Nashua, NH). Below is a highlight video from the current AAU season. Kesty has been playing for the NH Fastbreak 16U team.

If you have a highlight video for a player that you would like to see on this site, feel free to send it to me at: jeremy.leveille@gmail.com.

Mathieu Named NH Mr. Basketball

6'7" Big Man Gains Honor

Pinkerton's Zach Mathieu has won the 2010 WGAM Radio NH Mr. Basketball Award. He was presented with the trophy at an awards banquet held last week at the Radisson Hotel in Nashua, NH.

The award was open to all players in the NHIAA, regardless of grade level or division their school played in. It was voted on by about 15 members of the NH high school sports media.

This past season Mathieu led Pinkerton to the Class L championship. The 6'7" center was one of the top players in the state all year, but took his game to the next level in the tournament. He scored 30+ points and grabbed 20+ rebounds in both the semi-finals and championship game to lead the Astros to the title.

What's more impressive is that Mathieu focuses nearly all of his time and energy on baseball, not basketball. He has a full ride to play baseball next year at Franklin Pierce. Mathieu does not play AAU basketball. The only time he plays hoops is during Pinkerton's four month winter season. If he had focused on strictly basketball all along, he would likely be a low Division-I player and possibly play at UNH. But instead, he is a potential Major League draft pick in baseball.

The list of finalists for the WGAM NH Mr. Basketball award were as follows:
(alphabetical order)

*Alex Burt, Dover High School, Sr.
*Alex LaRosa, Salem High School, Sr.
*David Madol, Trinity High School, Jr.
*Sean Martin, Conant High School, Sr.
*Zach Mathieu, Pinkerton Academy, Sr.

Other players to receive this award in recent years include Jordan Laguerre, Tyler Roche, Corey Hassan and Mike Stys.

This all just goes to show that indeed, size does matter in high school basketball. The best player in the NHIAA is a 6'7" and about about 250 lbs. The best player in the MIAA is 6'10" (Carson Desrosiers). Having a dominant big man on your side is a huge advantage. Now I'm not saying that Mathieu is in Desrosiers' league, just pointing out how the top player in each state is a center who is 6'7" or above.

Mass Boys State Tournament Results

Mass. State Champions Crowned

The semi-finals and final were held this weekend for the Mass. Boys State Tournament. The Boston Warriors took the 17U title by defeating MPC Elite in the semis and the New England Ballas in the final. Meanwhile the Bay State Magic 16U team won on a buzzer beater over Mass Premier in the 16U final at the Mass Division III tournament. Another program we have been impressed with is the Blackstone Valley Chaos.

Some Mass players who have had strong AAU seasons so far include Pat Connaughton (Bay State Magic), Bobby Ahearn (BABC), Joe Bramanti (Granite State Jayhawks), Noah Vonleh (Mass Rivals) and Ramon Gibbons (Expressions).

Crusaders and Rivals Square Off

Plenty of Talent in Both Programs

This weekend at the Girls Spring Fling Tournament there are 44 teams playing. Most of the buzz though has been about three teams in particular. The NH Rivals have two 16U teams in the tournament, and the NE Crusaders have one 16U team.

On Day 1 of the tourney on Saturday, the Crusaders played against both Rivals teams in the two best games of the day. The NH Rivals-White team beat the Crusaders 64-58 in an outstanding, well played game. Then in the last game of the night the Crusaders evened the score with a 70-57 win over the NH Rivals-Blue team.

The Crusaders brought a star-studded lineup to the gym that included four players who have scholarships to play basketball next season. Tiffany Ruffin (Boston College), Kaitlyn Mathieu (William & Mary), Emily Siegart (St. Francis) and Christiana Bakolas (Bentley). Other key players on the squad included Melissa Frase, Maggie Brown and Hannah Ebling.

With that kind of talent it makes the win the Rivals-white team had over them even more impressive (although Mathieu did miss that particular game). The team was led by Maddie Blais, Lizzy Ball, Sam Brenner, Brooke Stewart and Alex Cohen. The Rivals jumped out to an 18-3 lead early on in the contest by playing some great defense and team basketball. The Crusaders battled back though and only trailed 27-26 at the half. The game was played at a very high level. Both teams showed exceptional ball movement, defensive intensity and the game was played at a fast pace making it a fun game to watch. Blais had a game-high 29 points, and also had over 20 points in the team's first game of the day.

The Crusaders took care of business against the Rivals-blue team later on. This Rivals team wasn't as strong as their white team, but they still had some solid talent and put up a good fight against the scholarship laden Crusaders team. Savannah Butterfield played very well for the Rivals, as did Kaley Marston and Kellie McDonald who was returning from an injury.