Tolman High senior guard Jaiden Perry brings the ball toward the sideline as he is guarded by Woonsocket High junior guard Juelz Stengel during last Wednesday night’s consolation game of the 49th annual Boys & Girls Club of Cumberland-Lincoln’s Roadshow Holiday Classic at Cumberland High’s Wellness Center. The Novans defeated the Tigers, 59-49.
Tolman senior guard Chris Berrios Morales stays inbounds as he gets ready to drive to the hoop last Wednesday in the consolation game of the 49th annual Boys & Girls Club of Cumberland-Lincoln’s Roadshow Holiday Classic. Woonsocket defeated Tolman, 59-49. The Tigers are back in action on Thursday with a 7 p.m. game in Warwick against Pilgrim.
Tolman junior forward Malik Gelinas shows off the trophy he received for earning a spot on the All-Tournament team at last week’s 49th annual Boys & Girls Club of Cumberland-Lincoln’s Roadshow Holiday Classic. Gelinas averaged 16.5 points per game in his team’s losses to Cumberland and Woonsocket.
Woonsocket junior forward Andre Bell, left, gets ready to sink a shot next to Tolman junior guard Malik Gelinas, #0, Woonsocket junior guard Daunte Melton, #4, and Tolman senior guard Julian Baker, #2, during the consolation game of last week’s Roadshow Holiday Classic at Cumberland High. Bell scored a game-high 15 points to help Woonsocket beat Tolman, 59-49.
Woonsocket High junior Juelz Stengel, right, runs the floor and brings the ball down the court while Tolman 's Julian Baker keeps an eye on him. Stengel scored five points in the Novans' 59-49 win.
Tolman High senior guard Jaiden Perry brings the ball toward the sideline as he is guarded by Woonsocket High junior guard Juelz Stengel during last Wednesday night’s consolation game of the 49th annual Boys & Girls Club of Cumberland-Lincoln’s Roadshow Holiday Classic at Cumberland High’s Wellness Center. The Novans defeated the Tigers, 59-49.
Tolman senior guard Chris Berrios Morales stays inbounds as he gets ready to drive to the hoop last Wednesday in the consolation game of the 49th annual Boys & Girls Club of Cumberland-Lincoln’s Roadshow Holiday Classic. Woonsocket defeated Tolman, 59-49. The Tigers are back in action on Thursday with a 7 p.m. game in Warwick against Pilgrim.
Breeze photo
by Kayla Panu
Tolman junior forward Malik Gelinas shows off the trophy he received for earning a spot on the All-Tournament team at last week’s 49th annual Boys & Girls Club of Cumberland-Lincoln’s Roadshow Holiday Classic. Gelinas averaged 16.5 points per game in his team’s losses to Cumberland and Woonsocket.
Woonsocket junior forward Andre Bell, left, gets ready to sink a shot next to Tolman junior guard Malik Gelinas, #0, Woonsocket junior guard Daunte Melton, #4, and Tolman senior guard Julian Baker, #2, during the consolation game of last week’s Roadshow Holiday Classic at Cumberland High. Bell scored a game-high 15 points to help Woonsocket beat Tolman, 59-49.
Woonsocket High junior Juelz Stengel, right, runs the floor and brings the ball down the court while Tolman 's Julian Baker keeps an eye on him. Stengel scored five points in the Novans' 59-49 win.
CUMBERLAND – The Tolman High boys’ basketball team spent its holiday break from its Division II schedule by playing two neighboring D-I teams at the 49th annual Boys & Girls Club of Cumberland-Lincoln’s Roadshow Holiday Classic at Cumberland High’s Wellness Center.
Unfortunately for the Tigers, who were the tournament’s defending champions, they were unable to topple either team. After suffering a grueling 77-72 overtime loss to Cumberland in their opening game on Tuesday, Dec. 27, the Tigers were dealt another close loss in the following night’s consolation game with Woonsocket, which came back in the second half to top Tolman, 59-49.
Amazingly, when the Tigers last won their championship, they did so in 2019. The tournament was not played in 2020, and because there was a COVID issue with Lincoln before last year’s title game with the Villa Novans, a championship game was not played. Only the consolation game took place, and the Tigers topped the Clippers, 56-50.
“We got to play two great teams,” Tolman head coach Mike Neal said. “I think Cumberland is going to be a great team down the stretch. And Woonsocket, with their combination of their (starting) five and ability, was a little overwhelming for us tonight.”
Woonsocket, which lost its tournament opener to the eventual champion, Lincoln, 61-45, trailed Tolman after a quarter of play, 15-7, but the Villa Novans sliced their deficit to 30-26 at halftime.
In the third quarter, the Novans quickly overtook the Tigers. After junior guard Daunte Melton got a steal and junior forward Andre Bell hit a three-pointer to make it a one-point game, senior center Abdoulaye Kourouma and junior guard Juelz Stengel scored to give the Novans a 33-30 lead.
The Novans held on for the rest of the quarter and carried a 41-39 lead into the fourth quarter. The Tigers put up a fight and regained the lead one more time, but could not hold on.
“When I’m giving our team the five keys to the game, one of the keys is putting together a whole game of four quarters,” Neal added. “We’ve been good for eight or 16 minutes, but we haven’t put together the full 32. (Last Wednesday’s) game started well, but didn’t finish well. The night before (against Cumberland), we didn’t start well, but we finished well.”
Leading the scoring for Tolman was junior forward Malik Gelinas with 11 points. Junior forward Isaiah Gois scored 10 points, while senior guards Jaiden Perry and Julian Baker each added eight. Bell led all scorers with 15 points, while his teammate, junior Antonio Delgado, put up 13.
“We fought hard and were able to claw back into it and make it a game,” noted Neal. “I’m pleased with the effort. It wasn’t the result we wanted, but you can definitely see the moral victory in there. We got to challenge ourselves against two D-I teams, a great guard in (Cumberland’s) Kalil (Fofana) and the size of (Kourouma) with Woonsocket.”
In their loss to Cumberland, the Tigers battled back from a 53-37 deficit after three quarters of play to tie the score at 63-63 at the end of regulation, but the Clippers won the game in OT by scoring 10 of the final 14 points, as Fofana hit some key free throws down the stretch and ended the night with a game-high 28 points.
Gelinas, who was selected to the All-Tournament team, and Gois each scored 22 points to lead the Tigers.
Neal, who is in his first season as the Tigers’ head coach after spending time as an assistant for crosstown Shea, was experiencing the Roadshow Holiday Classic for the first time and noticed “a different change in the environment and the scenery, and it’s a big court,” he added. “To play two teams in Division I, that’s always a challenge and a great opportunity, and we’re just thankful for the opportunity to play in this tournament.”
The Tigers, who returned to D-II action on Tuesday night with a game against Chariho, had improved their D-II record to 2-1 before the tournament by posting an 83-57 victory on their home court over Coventry and a 68-58 win at South Kingstown.
Gois scored 21 points and Perry added 20 in the victory over Coventry, which saw 11 players contribute to the scoring, and Perry nearly had a triple-double in the victory over S.K., as he scored a game-high 29 points and added 10 rebounds and nine assists. Gois also scored 20 points in that game, and senior center Dembo Konte added nine rebounds.
“We definitely know what we need to work on and what we need to sharpen up,” added Neal, whose Tigers will visit Pilgrim on Thursday at 7 p.m.
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