Cloudy with light rain this evening...then a chance of an isolated thunderstorm overnight. Some mixed winter precipitation possible. Low 38F. E winds shifting to W at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 80%..
Cloudy with light rain this evening...then a chance of an isolated thunderstorm overnight. Some mixed winter precipitation possible. Low 38F. E winds shifting to W at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 80%.
Updated: March 25, 2023 @ 3:55 pm
Cumberland High senior guard Kalil Fofana, #1, defends Bishop Hendricken senior guard Michael Paquette, #10, at the top of the key during the second quarter of Sunday afternoon’s Elite Eight game at Rhode Island College's Murray Center. Fofana scored a team-high 17 points, 11 coming in that quarter, and played well defensively, but the Clippers suffered a 57-38 loss.
Cumberland junior guard Joe Parenteau, left, gets ready to pass the ball in front of Bishop Hendricken senior guard Azmar Abdullah during the opening quarter of Sunday afternoon's Elite Eight matchup at Rhode Island College. Parenteau ended the game with 10 points, but Abdullah scored a game-high 22 points to lead the Hawks to a 57-38 victory.
Cumberland High senior guard Kalil Fofana, #1, defends Bishop Hendricken senior guard Michael Paquette, #10, at the top of the key during the second quarter of Sunday afternoon’s Elite Eight game at Rhode Island College's Murray Center. Fofana scored a team-high 17 points, 11 coming in that quarter, and played well defensively, but the Clippers suffered a 57-38 loss.
Cumberland junior guard Joe Parenteau, left, gets ready to pass the ball in front of Bishop Hendricken senior guard Azmar Abdullah during the opening quarter of Sunday afternoon's Elite Eight matchup at Rhode Island College. Parenteau ended the game with 10 points, but Abdullah scored a game-high 22 points to lead the Hawks to a 57-38 victory.
PROVIDENCE – Defensively, Cumberland High got the job done in its Elite Eight boys’ basketball matchup against Bishop Hendricken on Sunday afternoon.
Facing a potent team in the Open Tournament that had scored 60 or more points in 20 of their 22 games and boasted two 1,000-point scorers in senior guards Azmar Abdullah and Eze Wali, the Clippers stepped up and limited the Hawks to their second-lowest point total of the season.
Offensively?
The Clippers endured their worst offensive showing of the season and paid dearly for it in suffering a 57-38 defeat before a full house at Rhode Island College’s Murray Center.
The 2nd-seeded and defending state champion Hawks, who improved to 21-2 with the victory, will take on 11th-seeded East Providence in their Final Four matchup on Saturday at 6 p.m. at URI’s Ryan Center.
But in order to return to the state semifinals, they needed to put away the 10th-seeded Clippers, who handed them their first Division I loss, a 63-59 defeat on Feb. 8 inside the Wellness Center, and had not only won nine of their last 10 games, but also held each opponent to under 60 points.
“We played great defense, but we couldn’t get anything going on offense,” added Cumberland head coach Gary Reedy. “(More than halfway through) the third quarter, they had five points and we had three.”
“But this team has come a long way,” he added. “This is probably one of the better defending teams that I’ve had since I’ve been coaching. These kids didn’t quit.”
While the Hawks, who controlled the boards from start to finish, received 22 points from Abdullah and 15 from Wali, the Clippers were led by senior point guard Kalil Fofana’s 17 points and junior guard Joe Parenteau’s 10. Unfortunately for Cumberland, no one else scored more than three points.
“I give a ton of credit to Hendricken’s defense,” said Fofana. “They kept us under containment and they guarded the rim and the three-point shot well. I was able to get some of my shots off, but overall, it was pretty tough for me to score.”
Fofana was kept off the scoresheet in the opening quarter, which saw the Clippers lead just once – taking an 8-6 advantage on a three-pointer by junior guard Connor Allard – but the Hawks rattle off eight straight points in the final 1:41 of play to take a 14-8 lead.
In the second quarter, Fofana scored 11 of his points and Parenteau drained a big three-pointer, but the Hawks used a seven-point run midway through the quarter to help them take a 32-22 lead at halftime.
Senior guard Taye Meerbott then kicked off the third quarter with a three-pointer that cut the Clippers’ deficit to 32-25. But Cumberland amazingly couldn’t buy a bucket for the next six minutes and 54.5 seconds, and by the time the Clippers got back on the board with two free throws by Fofana, Hendricken led 40-27 with 33.5 seconds on the clock and never lost its double-digit lead.
In order to reach the Elite Eight, the Clippers needed to defeat 7th-seeded Central last Thursday night in their Sweet 16 matchup at the Providence Career & Technical Academy field house.
The Knights had topped the Clippers earlier in the season, 79-72, but Cumberland came back to roll past the Knights, 74-56, as Fofana scored 21 points, Parenteau had 15, and Meerbott added 11 to lead the winners.
The Clippers end their season with a 13-9 mark, but to their credit, they dramatically turned around their season in late January. Battling injuries, they headed into the final night of that month against Woonsocket with a 4-7 record, but pulled out a 59-50 victory that kicked off an eight-game win streak.
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