A couple weeks ago, Winslow and Medomak Valley met in the Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference Class B championship game. The conference championship games are glorified exhibitions, but when the Black Raiders and Panthers meet on Saturday at the Cross Insurance Center in Bangor, they’ll be plenty at stake.
Medomak Valley (18-2) and Winslow (18-2) will play at 3:45 p.m. on Saturday in the Eastern Class B final. Winslow is trying to get to the Class B state championship game for the first time since 2003, when it beat Mountain Valley. Medomak Valley last played in the state game two years ago, losing to Falmouth.
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Eastern CLass B Final
No. 2 Winslow (18-2) vs. No. 1 Medomak Valley (18-2)
• When: 3:45 p.m. Saturday
• Where: Cross Insurance Center, Bangor
The winner plays in the Class B state championship game on Friday, Feb. 27 at Portland’s Cross Insurance Arena.
Medomak Valley beat Winslow in the KVAC championship game, 66-63. In the lone regular season match, Winslow won, 62-45.
Winslow advanced with a pair of tight wins over Oceanside and Old Town, in which the Black Raiders gave up just 40 and 44 points, respectively.
“Playing defense got us here. Halfcourt man-to-man has been our thing all year,” Winslow coach Jared Browne said.
A focus of Winslow’s defense will be Nicholas DePatsy. The Panthers’ junior guard scored 28 points in Medomak Valley’s quarterfinal win over Maine Central Institute and 18 points in a semifinal win over Mt. Desert Island. Josh Kervin, Trenton Bouchard and Keanu Earle will likely share duties guarding DePatsy.
Winslow has excelled with help-side defense all season. The Black Raiders have a knack for angling ball handlers into the help side double team.
Along with DePatsy, point guard Micah Williamson is an offensive threat for the Panthers, and is coming off a 20-point effort against MDI.
“He’s a tough kid, a good competitor,” Browne said of Williamson, who was held to two points by Winslow in the regular season game on Jan. 2. “Off the dribble, he’s a very good player.”
Cameron Allaire and Colton Spear are strong rebounders and defenders for the Panthers.
The Black Raiders are led by KVAC B Player of the Year Justin Martin. The 6-foot-6 Martin was among the league leaders in scoring and rebounds. Bobby Chenard is strong interior defender and rebounder for Winslow. Senior guard Colby Robertson has made 53 3-pointers for Winslow this season, and leads the team in scoring in the playoffs, with 17 points per game. Robertson has excelled since joining the starting lineup this season after backing up Trevor Lovely last year.
“(Robertson) saw what kind of impact a great shooter can have on the game. He worked hard in the offseason,” Browne said. “He gets on a roll, he can knock it down.”
Travis Lazarczyk — 861-9242
Twitter: @TLazarczykMTM
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