Newton North&apos;s Ezra Pemstein (30) and Ethan Wright (14) put the defensive squeeze on Brookline&apos;s Blake Burke (11) in Tuesday night’s Bay State Conference clash.
The top-ranked Newton North boys’ basketball team often follows the lead of star senior Ethan Wright, but the Tigers are not a one-man band.
On Tuesday afternoon, Newton North wrapped up its 13th consecutive win against Eastern Mass. competition by pulling away from Bay State Conference rival Brookline for an 80-69 road victory.
While Wright had his usual standout effort with 34 points — on 15 of 34 shooting from the field — he struggled to find his offense as Brookline (10-5, 5-3) took a 27-16 lead early in the second quarter.
In stepped Aaron Cooley to spark the Tigers.
The 6-foot-5-inch sophomore led a 12-2 run in the second quarter, trimming the deficit to 36-32 by halftime.
Then Cooley helped Newton North (14-3, 7-1) seize control with 11 points and five rebounds in the third quarter as the Tigers outscored the Warriors, 26-8,to take a commanding 58-44 lead into the fourth.
Cooley shot 8 of 9 from the field and a perfect 7 for 7 at the free throw line for 23 points. He added a game-high 12 rebounds.
The Tigers won the rebounding battle, 47-21, and scored 52 points in the paint, including 16 from Cooley.
After going scoreless in the second quarter, Wright began to heat up in the third quarter and caught fire down the stretch, scoring 22 second-half points.
His second 3-pointer of the game gave North its largest lead (66-49) with 6:26 remaining, and the Tigers were able to hang on from there.
Abington 83, Calvary Christian 63 — Bryson Andrews scored 19 points to lead the Green Wave (9-6).
Franklin 63, Taunton 51 — Senior Jack Rodgers led the Panthers (15-1) with 16 points.
Cohasset 69, Southeastern 45 — Junior Thatcher Stone recorded 25 points as the Skippers (10-6) qualified for the state tournament for the eighth straight year.
Malden 79, Saugus 40 — Senior guard Tyler Holness scored 36 points for the Golden Tornadoes (11-5) in the road victory.
Lynn Classical 78, Danvers 35 — Senior forward Edwin Solis led the Rams (11-4) with 15 points.
Bellingham 70, Norton 50 — Junior guard Corey Chiappone had 19 points and junior forward Michael Reissfelder added 18 points for the Blackhawks.
Winchester 48, Reading 37 — Guard Joe McCarron scored 18 points for the Sachems (12-5).
King Philip 68, Oliver Ames 60 — Senior guard Pharoah Davis scored 19 points and junior forward Kyle Layman had 17 for the Warriors (3-12).
Hamilton-Wenham 59, North Reading 54 — Jake Lanciani (19 points) led the way for the Generals (13-2).
Brockton 90, New Bedford 59 — Senior Jarice Harris led the No. 5 Boxers (15-1) with 17 points.
Whitman-Hanson 71, Pembroke 56 — Sean Leahy scored 21 points and Jacob Hanson-Bartlett added 17 to spark the Panthers (11-4, 9-2).
Rockland 56, East Bridgewater 40 — Senior Zach Sharland paced the Bulldogs (12-2) with 13 points.
South Boston 73, Fenway 72 — Yanniel Balbuena scored 21 points to eclipse the 1,000-point milestone and lead the Knights (9-6).
Scituate 75, North Quincy 51 — Senior Abel Lopes Jr. scored 22 points for the Sailors (10-5).
Austin Prep 55, Saint Joseph Prep 31 — The Cougars (10-3) qualified for the state tourney for the third straight season.
Westford 54, Weston 39 — Senior captain Robbie Hudson led the Grey Ghosts with 14 points, seven rebounds and two blocks.
Apponequet 74, Somerset Berkley 69 — Andy Johnson led the Lakers (15-0) with 23 points.
Quincy 62, Duxbury 41 — Senior guard Damyan Markov (14 points) powered the Presidents into the state tourney.
Cardinal Spellman 76, Arlington Catholic 60 — Sophomore Craig Faria pumped in 27 points and senior AJ Jaramillo had 18 for the Cardinals (11-5).
Bancroft 75, Gann Academy 61 — Anthony Marguerite (27 points), Carlo Mannina (25 points, 15 rebounds) and Randy Pierce (11 points, 4 steals) paced the host Bulldogs (8-9) past the Red Heifers (7-9).
Bourne 48, Wareham 39 — The Canalmen (8-7) were led by Emma Fenton (16 points, 9 rebounds).
Matignon 61, Pope John 40 — The Warriors (14-0) continued their undefeated season, led by Katty Haidel (22 points, 18 rebounds).
Shawsheen 58, Minuteman 19 — Junior Shannon Fitzgerald led the Rams (10-3) with 15 points.
Newton South 52, Concord-Carlisle 32 — Senior Veronica Burton poured in 27 points as the top-ranked Lions (14-0) rolled to a Dual County League win.
Pentucket 60, Ipswich 21 — Jess Galvin recorded 15 points for the No. 18 Sachems (16-1).
Lincoln-Sudbury 80, Waltham 49 — Sofia Rosa scored 19 points for the Warriors (8-7).
Hingham 49, Plymouth South 25 — Sophomore Ryley Blasetti’s 13 points and five rebounds paced the Harborwomen (7-8), while sophomore Grace Bennis added nine points.
Mansfield 58, Attleboro 40 — Senior center Meg Hill (21 points, 12 rebounds) closed within 7 points of 1,000 for her career for the No. 10 Hornets (14-4).
Whitman-Hanson 51, Pembroke 36 — Junior Erin Leahy paced the Panthers (11-5) with 11 points and 10 rebounds.
Everett 61, Marblehead 37 — Senior Yasmeen Guerrier scored 25 points for the visiting Crimson Tide (10-4).
Abington 44, Carver 42 — Shooting guard Lauren Keleher had 16 points and 14 rebounds for the Green Wave (11-5).
Hopkinton 57, Dover-Sherborn 29 — Senior Ivy Gogolin had 16 points and 13 rebounds for the No. 8 Hillers (12-4).
North Reading 53, Hamilton-Wenham 36 — Junior guard Casey McAuliffe had 19 points to lead the Hornets (11-4) at home.
Scituate 49, North Quincy 41 — Junior Jaycie Rojik paced the Sailors (10-7, 9-2) with 20 points.
Franklin 69, Taunton 42 — Sophomore forward Ali Brigham had 21 points and 12 rebounds for the Panthers (11-6).
Westford 65, Weston 34 — Junior guard Brooke Pillsbury paced the fourth-ranked Grey Ghosts (12-3) with 18 points.
Lowell Catholic 43, Marian 19 — Emily Bartlett paced the Crusaders (6-7, 5-1) with 15 points in the Catholic Central League matchup.
Archbishop Williams 53, Bishop Fenwick 36 — Behind 14 points from Asiah Dingle and another 12 from Jess Knight, the No. 3 Bishops erased a 6-point halftime deficit for a Catholic Central win.
Silver Lake 49, Hanover 41 — Sophomore guard Holly Reeder-Morning had 16 points to lead the Lakers (11-4) on the road.
Milton 52, Fontbonne 41 — Senior Jeanmarie Fallon had 16 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 blocked shots as the host Wildcats (7-8) stunned the 17th-ranked Ducks (11-2).
Junior Meghan Kelly added 12 points.
Norton 66, Bellingham 47 — Senior center Meg Nichols lifted the Lancers (5-9) with 24 points.
Malden 35, Saugus 31 — Junior forward Tiffany Tortora finished with 14 points for the Golden Tornadoes.
St. Mary’s 3, BC High 2 — Senior forward Anthony Bono scored the winner — his ninth goal of the season — with 47.4 seconds left to lift the No. 13 Spartans (10-3-4) past the second-ranked Eagles (12-4-1) at UMass Boston, halting BC High’s 11-game winning streak.
Nobles 4, Groton 0 — Junior center Maddie Bayard scored a pair of goals for the Bulldogs (17-2-2).