PORTLAND — When Maranacook’s perimeter shooting dried up, the drought opened up Yarmouth’s transition game in a Class B South boys quarterfinal game at the Portland Expo on Saturday morning.

The No. 6 Black Bears (13-6) tried to hold the No. 3 Clippers (13-6) in check, but they ultimately succumbed, 43-33.

“We knew that would be the story of the game,” Maranacook coach Rob Schmidt said. “If we hit, we have a really good chance of winning that game. If we are off, we are not going to beat them.

“I think we did a good job holding them through our defense, but they are an absolutely outstanding team. We didn’t get quality looks that we normally get and the shots that we did get weren’t going down. They were well-prepared. Adam (Smith) is a really good coach. They didn’t let us transition down.

“They really penetrated well today, and in the paint they were able to dish.”

The Clippers worked for every basket they got, especially when they began to pull away in the second half.

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By the end of the third quarter, Yarmouth’s inside game came to fruition, giving it a 31-23 lead going into a tumultuous fourth-quarter.

Junior captain Jonathan Torres made some dazzling inside moves to finish with a game-high 17 points. Guard Ashanti Haywood added 11 points.

“I always say, somebody has got to hit a shot,” Yarmouth coach Adam Smith said. “Ashanti…hit a couple of shots for us. He really got us started. Jonathan has really started to step up. He has been struggling being a captain, a player and it has all come together in the last few weeks — and today was an indication what he means to us.”

Yarmouth’s defense was also stout, holding the Black Bears to five points in the second and third quarters.

Silas Mohlar scored a team-high 10 points and Cash McClure added nine for Maranacook.

In the first half, Maranacook owned the perimeter, hitting four consecutive 3-pointers to take a lead. McClure delivered four of the Black Bears’ 3-pointers to give Maranacook a 13-8 lead.

“We haven’t played a good first quarter all year,” Smith said. “And at 10 o’clock this morning, I didn’t think it was going to be a good first quarter today. But we still played great defense still. Offensively, we got into the flow. The second half, we started to run. Just got the cob webs out and got used to the team we were playing. They played a high intensity level and you have to get used to that, too.”


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