Donel Tangilamesu of St. Dominic Academy elevates for a layup against Poland Regional High School on Dec. 10 in Auburn. Daryn Slover/Sun Journal

With 10 days left, the boys basketball regular season has reached the point that nearly every game matters, and often to teams that aren’t even playing.

“Those Heal points, I tell them, keep an eye on them because they can change without us doing anything,” said Waynflete coach Rich Henry, whose team is 7-7 and ranked ninth in Class C South. “We can just be sitting here and the Heal points move around. So it is kind of fun at night to go out and see what’s going on and who’s won.”

The regular season ends Feb. 6, and the tournaments start with preliminary games Feb. 11 and quarterfinals on Feb. 14.

Some teams have hectic finishes to the regular season, with five or more games, while others are figuring out ways to stay engaged — and stave off rust — without playing.

St. Dominic (12-1) has played three games since Jan. 11, but will finish with five games in 10 days.

“We had an interesting schedule … we played on a Saturday against Sacopee (Valley) (on Jan. 11), and then we didn’t play again until the following Friday,” Saints coach Josh LaPrell said. “Then we played Monday, and then we’ve been off until (Tuesday). So it’s been three games in two weeks, and then we end the season with five games in two weeks.”

LaPrell said the time off has allowed the Saints to work on skills, but he’s glad they will get back into the rhythm of playing games to end the regular season.

Meanwhile, Dirigo’s regular season ends with two games between now and Feb. 3. Coach Cody St. Germain of the Cougars (9-7) said he wished the schedule was more evenly spread out.

“We had five bye dates, I believe, in the last three weeks of the season, and those were our only five for the whole season,” St. Germain said. “So (we) end up with, you know, one game a week for the last three weeks, (which) makes it pretty difficult to stay in that same game-type form.”

Bonny Eagle (5-10) has only three games left, but coach John Trull said the players won’t be sitting around until tournament time.

“We still practice every day,” Trull said. “Sometimes our practices are as physical as games and stuff. So it’s not like guys are getting time off. It’s not like it’s — I don’t really see a benefit to having extra time off down the stretch because you’ll have a week off before your last regular-season game and before your playoff game.”

Mt. Blue (10-5) has its regular season end Feb. 3 and coach Troy Norton said he’s already looked into scheduling a scrimmage between then and the start of the A North tourney Feb. 15.

“I mean, it’s a little challenging, especially that last week before we even know who our tournament opponent will be,” Norton said. “But we’re going to schedule an exhibition game; I think we’re going to play Mt. Abram, and they’re really good. So we’ll have a scrimmage in there to help keep the kids interested.

“But once you get to tournament week, the kids get excited about who they’re going to play and getting ready to play. So it’s not terribly challenging. It’s just you have to get a little creative in practice and keep the kids engaged.”

Tight race in B North

Justin Norwood has been coaching the boys basketball team at Mount Desert Island for 18 years now, and this year’s Class B North race might be the most wild run-in to the tournament that he can remember.

Entering Monday, less than seven Heal points separated five teams — four that have the same record — from fourth place through eighth in the B North standings. Going further down the list, only 16 points separates places 4-12.

“It’s insane,” Norwood said. “I’ve always felt like Class B North has been one of the most competitive leagues since I’ve been coaching, but this year has been a-whole-nother level of parity. There’s so many teams that are right there.”

Caribou (15-1, 123.51 Heal points) has a commanding lead, followed by Ellsworth (12-2, 99.7) and Orono (10-4, 67.0). Old Town (8-7, 58.8) occupies the fourth and final spot for a quarterfinal bye, but Maranacook and Hermon, both 8-7 with 56.8 Heal points, are breathing down the Coyotes’ neck.

Winslow (9-6, 54.8) and MDI (8-7, 52.0) aren’t far behind and could easily overtake teams. But with Presque Isle (7-8, 44.7), Foxcroft Academy (6-7, 44.4) and Maine Central Institute (5-9, 43.5) also in the mix — and with the last two having more games to play than his squad — Winslow coach Ken Lindlof knows there’s little margin for error.

“Our JV coach (Dave Pepin) did some analysis, and there’s a good chance we can finish as high as five — four might be tough — or as low as ninth,” Lindlof said. “We prefer not to look at that, focus on the task at hand, but you’re always scoreboard-watching when there’s Heal points involved.

Thousand Island

Deering’s Evan Legassey needs nine points Tuesday against Bonny Eagle to join the 1,000-point club. Legassey, a 5-11 guard, has been a consistent scorer since he averaged 10.1 points as a freshman. This year he’s averaging 18.5 per game.

Deering’s Evan Legassey needs nine points to reach the 1,000-point mark for his career. Ben McCanna/Staff Photographer

“He flew under the radar his freshman year, and then the fact that we struggled starting all sophomores his sophomore year, I think he kind of got lost in the shuffle,” said Deering coach Todd Wing. “This year people are keying on him.”

Wing said Legassey’s game has evolved from spot-up 3-point shooter as a freshman to being able to play in pick-and-roll sets and use his savvy to work inside and score, or get to the foul line.

Players who have eclipsed the milestone scoring mark this season include the Noble High duo of Jamier Rose and Bryce Guitard, Spruce Mountain’s Jace Bessey, Gray-New Gloucester’s John Patenaude and Dirigo’s Nathaniel Wainwright.

Thornton’s Wyatt Benoit (22.4 ppg) is over the 900-point plateau and on target to score his 1,000th point in the opening round of the AA playoffs.

Two-sport, one-day excellence

Last Monday, Greely senior Owen Partridge excelled in two sports. He started his day at the University of Southern Maine indoor track, winning a competitive 400-meter race in the Fleet Feet Maine Elite Invitational in 51.82 seconds – the fastest time among Class B runners this season.

Later that day he played man defense on high-scoring Falmouth guard Davis Mann the entire game. Mann was averaging 23.5 per game, 28.0 over his previous four. Partridge held Mann to five points on one made two-pointer and three free throws in Falmouth’s 59-45 win in Cumberland. Partridge also scored five points.

Greely coach Travis Seaver said the 6-foot-3 Partridge “was a good defender” as a junior, but this year, “His athleticism and strength and quickness has improved so much, he’s become a defensive stopper.”

Steve Craig of the Press Herald and Mike Mandell of the Morning Sentinel contributed to this story.